Caught In The Silence
by tjmack
Summary: Sequel to Patron Saints of Liars and Fakes & What Was Ever Really Special About Me Anyway? Shawn Spencer awakes to find that his world has literally been turned upside down.
1. Chapter 1

Shawn woke, his brain felt fuzzy. Like he had been stuck in a hazy fog for a far too long. He blinked his eyes as he took in his surroundings. It was beyond obvious that he was in a hospital, the smell alone gave that fact away. Clenching his eyes shut, Shawn tried to recall what had caused his most recent hospital visit. He groaned as pain flared behind his temples as glimpses flashed in his minds eye.

_An argument with his father, Lassiter and Juliet finding out his secret, Holden Marshall stabbing him._

Shawn's eyes flew open. His stomach clenched uncomfortably as bile rose in his throat. The pain throbbing behind his eyes was getting worse. Fumbling around, Shawn located the call button and smashed his finger down on it. His eyes scoured the room for something that he could throw up in, since he was certain he wouldn't be able to keep it at bay until the nurse came into his room.

Giving up, Shawn leaned over the side of his bed. Tears pricked his eyes as his body shook from the dry heaves. Nothing came up, but that didn't stop his body from trying like hell to push anything it could out of his body. One last shuttering heave left him slumped sideways against his bed.

He expected pain to flair in his abdomen from his attempt of expelling the contents of his stomach, but felt nothing but the dull ache of muscles that had strained too hard. There was no pain that felt like someone had been stabbed numerous times.

Shawn opened his eyes when the door creaked open. "Mr. Spencer."

Shawn groaned, his head still throbbing, though it was less than what it had been before. "I feel sick."

The nurse sighed, there was only minimal evidence from Shawn's attempt at throwing up before. She took in the pallor of Shawn's skin and frowned. Placing a hand against his cheek, she nearly jumped back. "It appears you have a bit of a temperature, Mr. Spencer. I'm going to grab a thermometer and your doctor. I will be back shortly. Until then-" her sentence trailed off, Shawn could only hear her shuffling stuff around. After a moment, she leaned over his bed and placed a tub in front of him. "If you feel like being sick again, please use this."

Shawn tried to nod, but groaned. "Thanks." his voice was hoarse and came out much more gravelly than normal."

The nurse nodded, before disappearing from the room. Shawn lifted the tub for a moment, yanking the thin hospital blanket up around his shoulders. His body shaking with bone-chilling cold. Once he was satisfied with his blanket placement, he placed the tub back down. With how his stomach was currently feeling, Shawn feared that he might need the tub again.

* * *

Juliet leans against the wall. Shawn has fallen back asleep by the time she is able to pull herself to his room. Instead of entering right away, she leans her exhausted body against the wall, staring into his room. Tears coat her eyes, and she quickly brushes them away before they can fall.

She didn't understand how life could keep throwing these things at her husband, and how he continually kept pushing forward. Never letting any of it stop him. He was so much stronger than he gave himself credit for, and in that moment, watching him sleep, Juliet realized that she was falling in love with him all over again.

It didn't matter how much pain they would both have to endure right now. All that mattered was how happy they would finally be able to be in the future. She sighed, as she brushed her fingers against her cheeks, catching newly formed tears as they fell.

His doctor had been pretty sure that Shawn's full memory would be restored. It would just take, and therapy. According to the doctor, he had explained to Shawn that he would be seeing a psychiatrist for the foreseeable future. _It's for his own good_, the doctor had explained, _it will help him deal with his missing memories, possibly even help him regain some of what's missing._

Even though those memories are part of who Shawn is, Juliet had let herself wonder for a few moments if it was really best that Shawn regain his full memory. Sure, he had no clue that he was a father, though that was an easy fix, it was more the memory of his father's death that she wanted to keep from him. That memory itself, caused her own heart to ache, and she hadn't even witnessed Henry's death. Of course, memories of his nightmares, which according to the doctor, had been caused by the aneurysm. Though, he couldn't give her answer as to why it was that Shawn had been seeing something that was real, and that involved people that he loved and cared about.

Pushing out one final, heavy breath, Juliet shoved herself up from the wall and walked into his room. She settled down in the uncomfortable chair, and took his hand. She kissed it lightly, and felt him stir.

"Hey, beautiful."

Juliet's cheeks flushed red almost immediately. "I look like hell, Shawn."

He grinned at her, and she felt her heart hammer in her chest. "I beg to differ. You look stunning as ever. However, if this is what hell looks like, then I am more than happy to take up homage there."

Juliet rolled her eyes. "Thank God you're not trying to pick me up, because that line was absolutely horrible!" She chuckled when he held a hand over his heart.

"I am hurt, Jules. To the bone-"

She shook her head. "Glad to see that the numerous knocks to the head haven't ruined your sense of humor."

He smiled brightly. "It would take a hell of a lot more than a few head injures for me to lose something as awesome as my sense of humor."

Juliet smiled, it was one of slight relief. "So, the doctor-"

Shawn waved his hand in a dismissive way. "It'll be fine, Jules. Can't keep a stunningly, handsome man down." he grinned, "though if there is something I should know, before I'm released-"

Juliet leaned forward. "A few things. One; Gus is an astronaut-"

Shawn laughed. "Yeah, right. It would take a lot more than a little memory loss for me to believe that!" His stomach jerked as he started to laugh harder.

Juliet sighed contently. She never would have thought he'd be so at ease with everything, but seeing him like this, it really cleared her conscience. "Okay, for real, there are a few things. First; you're a father."

Shawn's eyebrow shot up. "Serious?"

Juliet grinned, "Beautiful boy, Brandon Alexander Henry Spencer."

Shawn sat, stoic for a moment. Slowly a smile crossed his lips. "I'm a dad. I never thought I'd ever be so happy about that. Wow, a dad."

Juliet pulled her purse into her lap, and pulled out her wallet before removing a picture. "Here. Gus is watching him tonight, but I'll bring him in to see you tomorrow."

Shawn took the picture and stared at it. "Handsome. My boy is handsome." his cheeks felt like they were going numb from smiling for so long.

Juliet sighed, she couldn't tell him about Henry. Not when he was so happy. She couldn't take that from him, not right now.

"You said a few things. Anything else I should know?" he asked suddenly.

Juliet looked up, her eyes wide, "Uh—your mom is living in Santa Barbara now."

Shawn's brow wrinkled. "Seriously? Oh God! Please tell me that my parents aren't hooking up. I don't think my recently injured brain can take that information."

Juliet forced a laugh, her chest tightening slightly. "Nope. She thought she needed to be closer since you've been practically living in hospitals as of late."

Shawn faked a frown, even if the corners of his lips were still slightly upturned, "Low blow, Jules. Low blow," he sighed, before smiling softly. "So—um-my dad. Has he been here?"

Juliet just stared at Shawn, her eyes unblinking for a moment, before she schooled her features. "He's actually out of town right now."

Shawn nodded, the answer seemed good enough for the moment, though he knew something was up with the way that Juliet had just stared at him dumbfounded. He had witnessed enough liars to know when someone was trying to come up with a lie. That much, Shawn was able to figure out. He just wasn't sure _why_ she was lying. Now wasn't the time though. Exhaustion was starting to settle in, and he wanted to spend his last few conscious moments before he drifted off to sleep again, with Juliet.

Juliet smiled, as she pulled his hand to her lips. "I love you, Shawn."

His eyes twinkled with the amount of happiness flowing through him. "I love you too, Jules."

* * *

_Two Weeks Later_

Shawn sat wearily on the couch. His psychiatrist's office was fairly immaculate, with books in alphabetical order on the shelves that lined the wall. He sat, his fingers propped under his chin, at his desk. Shawn felt his knee bounce in time with his heart, as his nerves got the better of him. He had never been the seek help type of person, but between his doctor and Juliet, he wasn't given much of a choice in the matter. This was only his second appointment, his first had been only a few days earlier, exactly one day after he had been released from the hospital.

"So, Mr. Spencer, would you care to actually talk this time?"

Shawn sighed. He knew how these sessions worked, his mother was psychiatrist after all, he was bound to pick up something from her. He knew as long as he didn't talk, he wouldn't be forced to dive into his past. To uncover those painful memories, or discover new ones.

Though Juliet hadn't actually told him anything, Shawn knew she was hiding something from him. The pained guilt littered her face every time he attempted to ask questions about stuff that he apparently didn't remember. Like the case that had landed him in the hospital this time, which according to Gus and Lassiter, both of them had made it a ritual to visit him at least once a day, he had saved Lassiter and his daughter. That bit of information had a hard time settling into Shawn's mind. Lassiter had a daughter? He couldn't force himself to see Lassiter as a father.

He had yet to actually meet Lassiter's daughter, but Lassiter had explained that it was because the hospital held bad memories, and Lassiter didn't want to risk causing her anymore pain.

"Nope." Shawn answered finally, popping the _p_.

"Mr. Spencer, these sessions will only benefit you if you actually talk. I have to get an understanding of who you are and how your brain works if I'm going to help you."

Shawn shook his head. His eyes narrowed for a moment. "Did it ever occur to anyone that maybe I don't want to remember? I haven't been told much of what I don't remember, but what I have been told hasn't been a basket of roses. So maybe I forgot it all because my brain decided it was too painful to remember. All I know is that right now, right this minute, I am as happy as I can ever remember being. I don't want to jinx that."

The doctor nodded, "Well, your sessions here are part of your recovery. They are mandatory, so I can't excuse you from coming. I also cannot force you to talk, so we can sit here in silence if that's what you prefer, but I honestly think that you would benefit from at least talking about what you do remember and what you have been told."

Shawn sighed. "Like how I constantly risk my life, my health, my well-being to help the precinct out, and I get rewarded constantly by being yelled at by the chief? Like that?"

The doctor simply nodded, "That's a fantastic start. You feel like you're being taken advantage of?"

"Duh, Doc! Did you not hear the sarcasm in my voice? Do you want to know what happened two days after I woke up from my _**brain**_ surgery!? She walked into my room and told me how stupid I was to go into that cabin without police backup. That I'm reckless and a liability-"

"Do you disagree?"

Shawn sighed, as he ran a hand over his face. "No." his answer was merely a whisper.

The doctor eyed the clock on the wall. "We are out of time today, Mr. Spencer. I look forward to our meeting next week."

"Yeah, yeah." Shawn waved him off. "Me too." he grimaced, "until next week."

Shawn stood up and walked out of the office. His mind elsewhere. Did he really agree with what the chief had said? Obviously he needed to be more careful. Over the past year or so he had been stabbed repeatedly, ended up in a five month coma, and had brain surgery. He obviously wasn't as safe as he should probably be.

"Hey, babe." Juliet cooed when Shawn walked out of the doctor's office.

His head snapped toward her. He forced a smile, "Hey, Jules. So—food?" he cocked an eyebrow expectantly.

"Well, of course." She giggled, as she linked their arms. "I thought we could walk to the deli at the end of the block."

"Deli?" Shawn grumbled.

"Yes, Shawn. You agreed to take better care of yourself, that includes eating better."

"But—Jules!" he whined, "I can hear the jerk chicken place calling my name!"

Juliet shook her head. "Nope. Not today at least."

Shawn sighed, before kissing her temple. "Why can't I say no to you, and yet you find it so easy to say no to me?"

"Because I'm adorable and I'm more strong-willed."

Shawn nodded, "I agree with at least one of those."

Juliet gasped, before smacking his arm. "Not fair, Shawn!"

He chuckled, his conversation with his doctor forgotten for the moment. "Maybe not, but it certainly was hilarious." He said, before putting his arm around her waist and pulling her further against his side. Shawn couldn't believe he was so happy just being with Juliet, and his son. He was a family man, something that Shawn swore he would never be, and it made him the single happiest man on the planet.


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N:** _Apologies for how long this has taken. It took me a while to get the creative juices flowing for this chapter. Plus side? I'm nearly finished with chapter three, so look for that chapter to pop up by next weekend, hopefully!

* * *

Shawn yawned himself awake. He grinned at Juliet, who was still sound asleep, her body draped over his. Pressing his lips against her forehead, Shawn reveled in the happiness that swept over him for a moment. Which ended promptly by the screaming of a now four month old Brandon. Shawn peeled himself out from underneath Juliet's body, before pulling on a pair of sweatpants and padding down the hallway toward his son's room.

"Hey, buddy." Shawn cooed, smiling broadly at Brandon. "How about we let mommy sleep in a bit today, she's got to be tired after last night." Shawn grinned devilishly as thoughts of the previous night entered his mind. "Very tired." He said suddenly, as he picked his son up and cradled him against his chest. "Are you hungry?"

Brandon cooed loudly, swinging his chubby arms around.

Shawn laughed lightly, pressing a kiss to Brandon's thin, wavy blonde hair. "That's my boy." Shawn grinned against the crown of Brandon's head. Bouncing him softly, Shawn turned around and walked from the nursery, making a beeline for the kitchen.

"Alright, formula for my main man, and something microwaveable for the cooking challenged. Sound good, Brandon?"

A soft coo was the answer Shawn received. "That's what I thought." he said, before dropping Brandon off in his high chair.

Shawn quickly grabbed one of the ready made bottles from the fridge, and shoved it in the microwave, before turning his attention to the freezer. "Oh well nothing in here looks edible." Shawn nose wrinkled slightly.

He finally settled on some questionable looking burritos that he lifted from the freezer. Turning back toward his son, Shawn sighed. "Here's hoping daddy doesn't get food poisoning."

"Which you would get from those old things." Juliet called from the hallway.

Shawn jumped around, his hand placed against his chest. "Way to give your incredibly sexy husband a heart attack, Jules!" His eyes widened when he saw her leaned casually against the wall wearing only one of his tee shirts.

"You were saying?" She grinned, before walking forward, her hands wrapping around his neck as her lips captured his in a chaste kiss. "Now, I will fix us both breakfast, before you kill yourself with these." She took the burritos from his hand and chucked them into the trash can. "Daddy could never fend for himself." She looked at Brandon with a smirk. "It's a wonder you were able to keep yourself alive before I came around." Juliet said, her voice husky.

Shawn licked his lips and swallowed thickly. "Oh, what you do to me, woman." Shawn growled, his hands wrapped around her waist while she fished out ingredients for pancakes and bacon.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. I'm a sexy goddess." Juliet chuckled.

"Oh, I am not taking that back! I meant that last night." Shawn smirked, as his finger took a dive into the chocolate chip laced pancake batter.

"Shawn!" Juliet chasted, her hand smacking against his. "That has raw eggs in it!"

"I feel like that should have some sort of meaning to me, but yet it doesn't."

"You could get food poisoning!"

Shawn shrugged, "So worth it." he said, as he dipped the batter coated finger into his mouth. "Dude, that is fantastic!"

Juliet shook her head as the microwave beeped. "Grab Brandon's bottle, would you?"

Nodding, Shawn removed the bottle, and checked the milk's temperature the way that Juliet had showed him. When the liquid hit his forearm and it was lukewarm, he smiled. "Bottom's up, buddy." Shawn handed his son the bottle. Today was shaping up to be absolutely fantastic.

* * *

Shawn grumbled as he sat on the couch. His fingers playing with one of the buttons on his shirt, avoiding eye contact with the psychiatrist. He had decided that his little outburst, yesterday, would be his last. Shawn knew how most psychiatrist's worked, his mother was different, she actually helped others, but most were greedy. Helping meant that you'd get better, and getting better meant money stopped rolling in and who wanted that?

"Mr. Spencer-"

Shawn held up a hand. "Let me stop you there, doc. Mr. Spencer is my-" Shawn's sentence trailed off. His eyes went unfocused for a moment. A scream elicited itself from his mouth as tears formed in his eyes. "No! No, no, no!"

"Mr. Spencer! Shawn!" The doctor rose from his chair at his desk, and walked quickly toward Shawn. His hand reached out, shaking his shoulder. "Shawn!"

A pain-filled scream ripped itself from Shawn again. Slowly his eyes refocused, and he looked up at the doctor with blurry vision. Swallowing thickly, he pulled his bottom lip between his teeth and assaulted it. "She lied. She lied to me. Why would she do that!? Why?" Shawn wiped angrily at his eyes as more tears trickled down his cheeks.

"What are you talking about, Shawn?"

Shawn lifted his eyes to the doctor once more, raw pain filled his hazel eyes as he spoke, "She said that my dad was out of town—but it was a lie." His lip trembled before continuing. "He's dead. I remember him dying."

Without another word, Shawn stood up from the couch and stormed from the room. The small area felt like it was closing in around him, and he needed air. Fresh, crisp air. Shawn found himself internally grateful that Gus had taken him to his appointment today, because he was fairly certain that he couldn't stand to look at Juliet right now. Not with the amount of anger flowing through him. With a scowl on his face, Shawn emerged from the building as Gus rushed forward.

"Shawn, your appointment isn't supposed to be over for another half hour."

"Screw it!" Shawn shouted, as he turned from Gus' worried expression and started to walk. He couldn't be in the cramped car. Not right now, when breathing took every single amount of effort he could afford.

"Shawn!" Gus called.

Turning on his heel, Shawn knew he wasn't angry at Gus, he hadn't lied to him, but he needed to take it out on someone. "Why did she lie to me?" It was a pointed question, and he waited for Gus to deny it.

Gus shook his head, his eyes wide. "You remember?"

Shawn glared at him. "Not everything, and not the point. Now answer my question."

Sighing, Gus nodded. "I didn't understand why she did it at first, I was so angry with her." his lips pursed together for a moment, before continuing. "That's why we didn't talk the first few days you were in the hospital. She was mad at me for letting you go into that cabin and I was mad at her for lying to you. After four days of not speaking to each other, she pulled me aside and explained her reasoning to me. It made perfect sense, and I honestly—I couldn't blame her."

Shawn growled, "It made perfect sense!? To lie to me about my father being dead? How does that make sense? Did she not think I'd ever find out the truth? Did she not want me to remember?"

Gus grabbed Shawn's shoulders. "Of course she wanted you to remember! It's not my place to tell you why she did what she did, that is between the two of you. However, what I can tell you is that everything that she has done since the two of you have been married has been for you. She loves you more than anything, except for maybe Brandon," Gus grinned, "but that's a given. She never wanted to hurt you, and she never meant to let it go on this long. You've been so happy—she didn't want to ruin that for you."

Shawn sneered at him. "Yeah, well that went really freaking great, didn't it, Gus? Just, leave me alone right now, please. I need time." Shawn turned around, and started to walk away.

Gus reached out and grabbed his arm. "At least let me drive you somewhere."

Shawn held up his hands. "I can't do that." he pointed at the car. "I cannot get into that thing right now. It is too small, and I am barely keeping it together. I'll call you later." With that, Shawn turned around and started down the sidewalk.

Gus sighed, pulling out his phone. Hitting the correct speed-dial, he waited two rings, "Hey, it's me. We have a problem."

* * *

Shawn raised his hand, suddenly nervous, the anger that had enveloped him earlier had long since dissipated, and knocked three raps against the wooden door. Pulling his hand away, he used it to rub the tiredness from his face. Quickly, the lock on the door was disengaged and the door was thrown open. Shawn hadn't realized that tears had formed in his eyes until he saw her face, and felt as the first one trickled down his cheek.

"Hey." his voice wasn't much louder than a whisper and held the roughness of the emotion burning inside of him.

With a weary smile, she answered back, "Hello, Shawn. Please come inside." With a sweep of her hand, she indicated for him to make himself at home.

He stepped inside the small apartment, made it to the couch before suddenly turning back toward her. "Did you know? That she lied I mean."

His mother shook her head, a sad look on her face. Shawn's mouth moved to open, and Madeline held up a hand to stop him. "You have to understand, Shawn, it was not an easy position to be in." she sighed, realizing that she was going to have to explain it all, in hopes that it might make things easier for Juliet. "Juliet called me, when you were being rushed to the hospital. I could tell by the way her voice shook that it wasn't good. I mean-" Madeline ran a shaky hand over her face, "obviously it wasn't good. People aren't taken to the hospital because they're in perfect health. I just knew that it was pretty bad, especially since Juliet isn't as good at concealing her emotions, not as well as she thinks she is. I wanted nothing more than rush straight over to the hospital, to see that you were okay and to be there for Juliet, but I was in New York helping out. I explained the situation, and promptly caught the next flight to Santa Barbara. By the time I got into town, Juliet had learned all the information on your condition-"

Madeline stared at Shawn. His jaw was clenched and his hands were trembling. She put a hand on his shoulder, but he shrugged it off. "Just finish the story." he spat out, before sitting down.

"She informed me on what the doctor had said. How you had partial memory loss from the surgery … She asked me if it would be harmful to you, if she told you straight out about what happened to your father. Do you understand how hard of a question that is for a mother who is also a psychiatrist? My initial thought was that it could certainly be harmful, that she shouldn't tell you something that could cause you more harm than good. A memory like that, for most memory loss patients, is traumatic. It can, at the very least, make the memory loss worse. However, you are my son, and I knew you needed to know the truth and hiding something so profound from you—it didn't feel right. Ultimately, I explained both situations to her, and told her that I did not want to be part of the decision making process. That I couldn't ultimately make a decision like that, I wouldn't be able to wrap my head around it like she could. When she told me that she couldn't hurt you like that, by telling you the truth, I realized that she was right. You are so profoundly happy right now, Shawn. She didn't want to take that away from you, she couldn't. I understand that you are angry and upset, and you are definitely entitled to be. However, you have to understand the situation from Juliet's point of view. She made an impossible decision, Shawn. Either risk hurting you further by telling you the truth, or allow you to be happy for a while until the memory came back on it's own."

Madeline smiled softly, reaching her hand out to his shoulder again. A twinkle formed in her eye when he didn't shrug it off this time. "I'm going to assume by this conversation that you do remember what happened to Henry?"

Shawn's head hung. "He's dead. I don't remember every little detail. All I know is that he is dead, and that I was there. It had to do with that Holden Marshall case didn't it? Gus told me about how his son wanted revenge for Holden being shot to death because he tried to kill me. That he had kidnapped Jules and threatened to kill her."

Madeline sighed. "I don't know a lot of details on the actual case, but from what Juliet has told me over the past seven months, that sounds about right."

A sad smile crossed his lips, as his finger twirled his wedding band. "You two have become close?"

Sliding into the seat next to Shawn, Madeline nodded. "You didn't give us a lot of a choice did you? I liked Juliet before hand, but to see the depth of her love for you, she's a keeper, Shawn."

"Yeah. I just don't know that I can forgive her that easily. It just really hurts me that she would keep something like this from me."

Madeline cocked her head slightly, a sly smile on her face. "Didn't you lie to her for years?"

Shawn sighed, "That's different."

"No, Shawn, it's not. It's the same thing. A lie is a lie, no matter what its about. She was able to forgive you for that, I feel you should be able to afford her the same luxury."

Shawn's eyebrows lifted, "Are you saying that we're even?"

She laughed lightly, "Something like that. Its still pretty early, have you eaten?" Shawn's head shook. "How about we go out for lunch, give you some time to cool off."

Shawn smiled softly before nodding, "That sounds nice, mom." He watched as she grabbed her jacket, and followed her out of the apartment. "By the way, I really like the apartment, mom." he grinned softly, before putting an arm around her shoulders.


	3. Chapter 3

Juliet let out a sigh, a wine glass clutched tightly in her fist while she eyed the front door. She had only just gotten off the phone with Madeline, when three hours flew past without Shawn coming home, to see if she had seen him. The call unnerved her slightly, when Madeline explained that she had told Shawn the whole truth about why Juliet had lied to him. Madeline couldn't tell her with any certainty what she should expect when Shawn walked through the door.

She sat down her wine glass, only two small sips had been taken from the smooth liquid, as she toyed with the baby monitor. Brandon had been down for his nap for a couple of hours without so much of a peep. Checking that the volume was at its maximum, she then made sure that the device was actually on. Frowning at the baby monitor, Juliet pulled her feet out from under her with the clear intent to check on Brandon. Her feet hit the floor the moment that the door knob wriggled.

Sighing, she sat back, hoping that Brandon was indeed alright in his crib, she turned her attention to the front door. As soon as it swung open, she gauged Shawn's facial features and huffed when they were unreadable. He had his poker face on, and it was nearly impossible to read it. However, if he came close enough, she might be able to pick out clues about how he was feeling from his eyes. Though he was an expert at keeping his mood out of his eyes, occasionally he slipped and she could pick up a hint. All she wanted was, a hint of what kind of night she was in for.

"Jules." his voice was off, slightly cold, almost icy.

This was not starting off good, and for a moment she thought that Madeline had spoken in a way that made her appear like a bad person. She hadn't lied to him to hurt him or out of malice. It was because she loved him that she had lied, and it hurt her that he couldn't see that.

Swallowing thickly, she pushed herself up off the couch. With her arms outstretched toward him, she reached out toward his chest. He shrugged her off, his eyes were cold. The normal brightness in his hazel eyes had dimmed to let a darkness shine through. It chilled her, and made her insides quiver.

"Shawn, I am so sorry."

He flicked his wrist, and suddenly, Juliet was taken aback. He had been trying so hard to hide it, but that one movement had unlocked the entire mask. The grief, pain, and _hurt_, shone through with such intensity that Juliet felt like her heart might burst from the pain coursing through it.

"Please, let me explain."

Tears pooled in his eyes, as he hung his head. Juliet reached out her hand, tentatively, her fingertips grazing his cheek. Her bottom lip quivered as tears slid down her cheeks.

"I don't need an explanation, Jules!" His voice was raised only slightly, as he shrugged her hand from his cheek. He bit his bottom lip. "You lied, and no explanation you give me will change that fact. It doesn't matter why you did it. It only matters _that_ you did it. Do you understand how bad that hurt me? To know that you would do this?"

Juliet wasn't upset anymore, of course her heart still hurt because he was hurt, but his words were only having one effect on her. Anger rose to her cheeks, flushing them red. "Wait a damn minute, Shawn." Her voice was a low, threatening tone. "_You_ lie to me all the time." She swiped her hand around, gesturing dramatically. "When you lie, Shawn, you end up in the hospital. It are never little white lies with you, it are big, fat, near death lies. How do you think that makes me feel? Huh!?" She poked him in the chest with her index finger. Tears were flowing down her cheeks unchecked, before she pushed forward. "Yes, I lied to you. Do you want to know why? Because you smiled at me, Shawn. A real smile. You were more like yourself than I had seen since your motorcycle accident. I didn't want to take that away from you. I never, ever meant to hurt you, but when you lie, Shawn, that's all it feels like. That you're trying to hurt me. To push me away. If you want me to leave so badly, Shawn, then just be a man and tell me. Just … stop hurting me, because I can't take it any more. The pain is too much."

Shawn took a step back, shock written on his features as he collapsed in the chair behind him. His mouth bobbed open and closed a couple of times as he stared at her. "Jules … I—uh..." Tears sprang to his eyes all over again, and he bit his lip to keep them at bay. "I'm sorry." he finally forced out. "I'm not just saying that because I thought I needed to. I mean it. You have to realize, any lie I've told you—anything I've done that has hurt you, it wasn't part of some master plan. I would never, ever, do that to you. I love you, Juliet, with everything that is inside of me. I don't want you to leave." Shawn took a breath, as he ran his hand over his face. He had been so angry when he walked into the house and saw her. Even if he knew that she wasn't trying to hurt him, it hurt to see her sitting there so _calm_. He hadn't realized how badly she was hurting underneath. Shawn stood back up, and approached her, "I feel so selfish right now." his voice broke over the words, as he pulled Juliet into his arms.

"No!" She whispered out, pushing against him. His arms wound around her body, holding her tightly to his body. She fought against it for a moment, before the fight left her body and she let him hold her. Exhaustion set in, as sobs wracked her body. She hadn't shared her feelings with anyone, she hadn't wanted to. Everyone was so happy, and finally it felt like her life was starting to make sense again. Her hurt feelings over Shawn's constant lying hadn't seemed to matter much, until he pointed his finger at her for hurting him.

"I am so sorry, Jules." he whispered into her ear, before pressing a kiss to her hair.

* * *

Shawn sat on the edge of the bed, a sigh sounding from his mouth, as his hands ran through his hair. Juliet could tell something was bothering him, as she settled into bed. The lamp sitting on his bedside table lit him up slightly, she could see his hands shake just a little and her heart started to hurt all over again.

"Shawn..." Juliet called out cautiously, fearful of another blow out like earlier. Both of them had cried themselves out, as they each grieved for two events in their lives.

He turned toward her, his eyes red-rimmed, but no tears were apparent in his eyes. "You still haven't told me what happened, Jules. I have to know, it's killing me."

She sighed softly, she had hoped to save this conversation for the morning. Her body was exhausted and craved a good nights sleep. However, she couldn't find it in herself to deny him the one thing he was seeking: answers. One curt nod, had her turning slightly, crossing her legs in front of her. She picked at the comforter that lay at her feet, before picking up his hand and holding it.

"I need you to promise me one thing before I tell you what happened." She looked up to meet his eyes and waited until he nodded, before continuing. "I need you to promise that no matter what I say, that you won't blame yourself for what happened." A sigh escaped his lips, before nodding.

Locking her eyes on Shawn's, she jumped head first into the story. "Okay. Well, you and your father were still being childish, fighting over the fact that Henry had accidentally spilled your secret-" she paused, as he nodded, taking in the information, she pushed forward. "Carlton had called me in to help him with some paperwork, so I dropped you off at your father's house. I felt like something was wrong, so I left, when I got to the house I found you unconscious on the floor and -" Juliet felt a lump form in her throat, and found it nearly impossible to push past it. Swallowing thickly, she blinked a couple of times to keep the new batch of tears forming in her eyes at bay. "I found Henry on the floor. A single gunshot wound-" she sighed, before pushing on, "he was already dead, and I was so afraid that you were too." Her voice shook at the end, and she felt him squeeze her hand.

Looking up, she took in his expression. He nodded, prodded her to continue. Sniffing, she nodded, before moving forward. "All the evidence pointed at you. There was no sign of forced entry, only you and your father were in the house. There was nothing that supported a third party being in the house, so Carlton had no other choice but to hold you on suspicion of murder. I fought like hell to prove your innocence, but I didn't find proof in time. The man that had murdered your father was put in a cell with you, and he beat you so severely that you were put into a medically induced coma. While I was on patrol, watching your room, and ultimately fighting a severe bout of morning sickness, he came into your room and kidnapped me. Carlton had you pulled from your medically induced coma, where you did what you do best. You broke out of the hospital, found and rescued me."

Shawn nodded, though his eyes proved that he was off somewhere else. He turned tear-filled eyes back to Juliet, with a small, sad smile on his face he spoke. "Thank you, Jules. For being honest with me."

She nodded. "I'm just sorry that I hurt you first."

He shrugged, "I know you didn't mean to hurt me. I'm sorry that I hurt you. We really need to stop doing that." He said, as he leaned back into the bed. His arm outstretched as Juliet crawled over to him, her head laying on his chest and he pulled her tighter against him. "Just know that no matter what, I love you. Always, forever, until my heart beats its last beat. I swear it, Jules." He waited for a response, but when he didn't receive one, he peered down at his wife's face and smiled softly when he saw that she had fallen asleep. "Goodnight, babe." Shawn whispered, before shutting off the lamp on his bedside table.

* * *

Shawn groaned, still half unconscious, he had the feeling that someone was watching him closely. His brow furrowed, before he cracked an eyelid open. He expected to see the baby blue eyes of his wife staring back at him, in fact, he was hoping that was exactly what he was going to see. When his hazel eyes met those of the chocolate brown of Gus' eyes, Shawn did the only thing he could think of. He screamed.

"Dude! You're gonna wake up Brandon." Gus hissed at his best friend.

"Well, maybe, just maybe, if you didn't lie there and stare at me like I'm something delicious to eat, then maybe I wouldn't have had a reason to scream!" Shawn hissed back.

Gus threw his hands up in surrender. "Alright, chill, Shawn. I just, I thought we could have a movie marathon."

Shawn's lips twitched, but he fought against the smile that wanted to cross his lips. "Did you check with Jules?" his eyebrow cocked slightly.

"Didn't have to. She told me that she had to run to the station to have a chat with the chief about something. Asked me if I wanted to come hang with you and Brandon for while."

Shawn nodded before his signature lop-sided grin crossed his lips. "What'd you bring?"

Gus sighed, his eyes closed. "The Breakfast Club, Top Gun, and Groundhog Day."

Shawn tapped his chin, his eyebrow furrowed as he thought over the choices given to him. "A bit mixed up, a little all over the place." Shawn mused, before a smile slowly crossed his lips. "I love it! Let's do it. I gotta feed the little man while we watch though." Shawn pointed out, as he pulled back the comforter and stood from the bed. Shawn wished he could remember the last time he had sat down with Gus for a good old fashioned movie marathon, so that he could appreciate it just a little more.

* * *

Juliet knocked lightly on the chief's door, and waited a brief moment before she was commanded to enter. Pushing the door open, she offered the older woman a smile, before shutting the door behind her. Walking stiffly toward one of the available chairs in front of her desk, Juliet sat down, her hands clasped in front of her.

"Detective Spencer, I've asked you here-"

Juliet held up a hand, interrupting her superior, "I know why you asked me here. Because my leave of absence is up at the end of the week, and I haven't been in contact with you about it." Juliet spoke, sure of herself.

Karen nodded her head, briefly, her hands folded on top of her desk. "I know you're overwhelmed with Mr. Spencer's memory loss, but from what I've been told, he isn't considered a danger to himself or anyone else. So, the question is, why haven't you contact me about returning to work at the beginning of next week?"

Juliet sighed. She hadn't even talked to Shawn about this yet. In fact, she had only just came to the decision in the last few days. Especially after the lengthy discussion she had with Shawn, just last night. "Because, I haven't made the full decision to return to work next week."

Karen's eyes widened briefly, "You know I can't hold your place indefinitely, correct?" Juliet merely nodded, unwilling to actually tell the chief she had come to a decision before she talked it over with Shawn.

In reality, Juliet had no intention of returning to her post as a detective for the Santa Barbara Police Department. It wasn't that she didn't love her job, and she knew that she had worked hard to get to the level of respect that she had at the department, but she was sick and tired of always putting both her and Shawn's lives in danger. They had a son to think about, and if Juliet was truly honest with herself, she really wanted to have another baby. A job at the police department just didn't support the family life that Juliet always saw herself having.

"Juliet, is there something that you'd like to talk with me about?" Karen prodded, the look on Juliet's face spoke high volumes than her actual words did.

"Yes, Chief, I just—I need to talk with Shawn about it first, before I talk with you." Karen nodded softly. "I do appreciate the additional time to get my thoughts in order on this. For you constant patience with both me and Shawn, and mostly—thank you for giving me a shot. I will be forever grateful to you for that."

The chief's eyebrow furrowed, a smile on her face. "It sounds like you might have already come to a decision, Juliet. You have until the end of next week to give me an answer, otherwise I will be forced to replace you. I'm sorry, but I already have one detective that is on an indefinite leave, and I can't have two that are just floating around, taking up jobs that other's need."

This time Juliet's eyebrows furrowed, confusion lit up her features. "If you don't mind me asking-"

The chief shrugged, "I would have assumed that he would have told you. Carlton, he's been staying in Pittsburgh with Lucinda and his daughter. I don't think he plans to move there permanently, and I don't think he plans to turn in his badge, but he's been very secretive about his plans—much like you."

Juliet couldn't believe what she was hearing, and she didn't know why Carlton hadn't told her. "How long has he been in Pittsburgh?" Juliet asked, realizing that his visits with Shawn did seem to just stop all of sudden before he was released.

"Almost a week, I believe."

Juliet sighed, that seemed about right. He had visited with Shawn particularly everyday the first week, and then it just stopped. No call, no reason why, he just stopped coming by. She had simply chalked it up to him spending time with his daughter, but she had never thought he had left town. It definitely hurt that he didn't tell her, but she couldn't find it in herself to be angry with him. Not for spending time with a daughter he never knew he had.

"Okay, thanks, Chief." Juliet said softly, standing up. "I'll give you an answer by next week. Thank you."

The chief gave a curt nod, before Juliet let herself out. Now she just needed to find the right time to have this conversation with Shawn.


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/N:** _Bit of steaminess in the beginning. Just a heads up... not too graphic on details though.

* * *

Juliet walked into the house, butterflies abound in her stomach, as she readied herself for the conversation that she was about to have with Shawn. A smile curled itself onto her lips as she took in the sight before her. Shawn sat, his head lulled to one side, sound asleep with Brandon curled against his chest. Shawn's hand lay against Brandon's back, and Juliet could tell that Shawn had fallen asleep while rubbing Brandon's back.

An idea came to Juliet, as she slipped her shoes off and tip-toed toward her two sleeping men. She walked around to the side of the couch and leaned down. Her lips were mere inches from Shawn's ear, as she breathed deeply before releasing it. She let the breath tickle Shawn's neck before speaking, "Do you understand how sexy you are right now?" Her voice was husky and lustful.

A moan elicited itself from Shawn's mouth as his eyes flew open. Careful not to jostle his still sleeping son, Shawn craned his head to look at Juliet. Taking in her lust-filled eyes, a smile slowly quirked its way on Shawn's lips.

"Let me just transport him." Shawn mumbled, as he bit his lip.

Careful to not jostle Brandon very much, Shawn stood up and cradled Brandon in his arms. He smiled down at his still sleeping son. "Oh, you are so daddy's favorite person right now." He looked back up at Juliet and winked at her.

"I'll just be waiting in the bedroom," she said, as she started to strip off her clothes on the short walk to their bedroom.

"Oh daddy is so happy right now." Shawn whispered softly.

Carefully, Shawn carried Brandon to his room and nestled him into the crib. Making sure that the baby monitor was turned on, Shawn stuck the other one in his back pocket before pulling the door closed quietly. Taking a deep breath and waiting a beat to make sure that he wasn't going to stir, Shawn all but bolted down the hallway, stripping off his shirt along the way. He threw open the bedroom door and gawked at Juliet.

"J-Jules." Shawn stuttered out.

Juliet twirled a string hanging off of the negligee that she wore. A smile crept onto her face, as Shawn panted softly. She stalked forward, one eyebrow cocked, as her hands reached out to run up and down his chest.

"You already took off your shirt," she pouted softly, before pressing a kiss to his chest.

"Oh, what you do to me." Shawn stammered, his hands running down from her shoulders to the tips of her fingers. "Just—pause for a moment." Shawn sighed, trying to gain control over his raging hormones. He felt as his pants became tighter in the front and tried his hardest to ignore it for the briefest moments. He removed the baby monitor from his back pocket and sat it on top of the dresser, before checking the volume. "Okay-" Shawn started, but found Juliet throwing her legs around his hips as he turned around.

Her lips seized his in a passion filled kiss. Her hips bucked against his slightly, as she felt him starting to rise beneath her. She moaned, as his tongue entered her mouth. His hands roamed all over her body, before tugging on the edge of her negligee. Their mouths parted slightly as he pulled it over her head and tossed it onto the floor. Juliet trailed wet kisses from the corner of Shawn's mouth down his neck and stopping at the top of his chest. Shawn moaned softly, as he walked their still joined body's toward the bed and laid them down.

* * *

Shawn smiled at Juliet as he pulled his jeans back on. "That was unexpected." He finally mumbled, a happy, sleepy smile on his face.

"In a good or bad way?" Juliet asked, as she pulled a loose tee shirt over her head.

Shawn stared at Juliet, a disbelieving look on his face, before shaking his head. "You really had to ask? If I enjoyed making love? Really?" He asked, as he stood up, his tee shirt hanging loosely from his hand, and walked toward Juliet. His lips grazed hers carefully. "It was amazing, Jules." He winked, before pulling his tee shirt over his head.

Juliet's mouth opened just as Brandon let out an ear-splitting scream. "Someone's hungry." Juliet countered with, a grin on her face. Shawn made a move to exit their bedroom, when Juliet grabbed his arm, "Shawn, I need to talk to you about something. Once Brandon's fed, we have something to discuss."

An almost oddly off-putting serious look overtook Shawn's face, and Juliet felt her heart lurch. She almost wished she knew exactly how he would take to her news, to her decision. He gave a curt nod, before exiting the room. His footfalls sounded heavy, as Juliet was left with the after thoughts of what their discussion would hold, and how he would react. After a moment, Juliet found herself wondering down the hallway, following the sounds of Brandon's gurgling and Shawn's chuckles. It helped soothe her frazzled nerves that his serious mood seemed to have been replaced by something much more enjoyable.

"Easy, Brandon. The bottle isn't going anywhere." Shawn chuckled, as Brandon gulped down the milk from his bottle.

"Did you feed him today?" Juliet asked, her eyebrow raised slightly and her arms crossed over her chest.

Shawn nodded, "Well of course! What kind of father would I be if I didn't feed my son. Just because I might have had a few fish die under my watch, means nothing!" Shawn grinned by the end of his defense, and Juliet couldn't help but smile back at him.

That was one thing about Shawn, his smile and laughter were absolutely contagious. Which was why it was always so difficult for her to stay angry at him at any given time. He was far too charming for his own good.

Juliet pushed herself up off the wall, and walked toward her two favorite men, before stealing Brandon from Shawn's grasp. "How's my big boy?" Juliet cooed at her son, before grasping the nearly empty bottle from Shawn's stunned grasp.

"Dude, not cool!" Shawn pouted, his arms crossed against his chest. He fought against the happiness attempting to radiate out of him at watching his wife feed their son. Shawn had never really saw himself as the father type. In fact, Shawn had never really saw himself as the responsibility type, but now that he had Brandon, he could never picture his life without his son. A tear fell down his cheek as he realized that his father never got to see him take on this new role in his life. That his father never even knew that he was a grandfather. Shawn swallowed thickly, as he watched Juliet transport the now full and happy baby to his playpen before turning back toward him. "So, you wanted to talk about something?" Shawn tried to hide the thick emotions that were threatening to cave his throat in as he spoke.

"You might want to sit down." Juliet sighed, as she ran her hand against the back of her head. She knew that it was one of her nervous tells, and that it would only worry Shawn further.

"What's going on, Jules?" Shawn's eyebrow rose with concern.

She sighed, as she sat down at the kitchen table beside him. Reaching out her hand, she clasped his tightly. "I had a meeting with the chief this morning. It was about my leave of absence being up." Shawn nodded, his jaw tight, and for the first time she saw the thick emotions that he was currently battling deep inside. She fought against the urge to shut her eyes tight and cry. Juliet knew exactly what was bringing out that level of emotion from Shawn, and it only served to break her heart all over again. She wondered briefly if now was the right time to tell him, but she also knew that she had to give the chief an answer soon, or her decision would be made for her. "I was supposed to tell her that I was coming off of my leave, and that I was able to return to work."

Shawn nodded, "That's great, Jules. I know how much you've missed that place. If you're worried that I'd be upset or something, I'm not-"

"It's not that, Shawn." She couldn't take the praise anymore, and that look of pride in his eyes in the brief moment that he thought she was returning to work let her know just how he would respond to her news. Bracing herself with an inhale of breath and slowly releasing it, Juliet looked him square in the eye before speaking, "I don't think I'm going to go back. I think I'm done with being a detective. I can't do it anymore. I can't keep putting both of our lives in danger, not when we have a child to take care of."

Shawn stood up abruptly, his head shaking back and forth. "No." His voice wasn't loud, and it wasn't angry. There was a hint of almost; sadness in it. "I can't let you do that. You worked too hard to get to where you are to just give it all up. If it's me that you're worried about, Jules, I'll stay out of it. I won't get involved, I swear. I know that I've made you promises like this before, and that I've fallen flat on them, but this time is different! I swear it this time. I won't let you-" his voice became more frantic with each word that escaped his mouth.

Juliet stood up, placing a calming hand on either side of his face. "Ssh, Shawn. I'm not doing this just for you, I'm doing it for me too. I want to be there for Brandon, I want to be there for you and there are no guarantees with this job. It is too dangerous for someone with a family. I want to do this, not only for myself, but for our family."

Shawn shook his head. "No. I can't let you, Jules. You will end up resenting us if you do it. I don't want to be the reason why you don't love me or our children. I won't stand by and let you throw your career away. Call the chief, tell her that you're willing to come back as soon as she needs you too."

Juliet sighed, tears present in her eyes. "It's not your decision, Shawn. It's mine, and I've already made up my mind. I just didn't want it to become official without telling you about it first. I'm turning in my resignation tomorrow."

Shawn sighed, as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "The end of the week, give me until then to change your mind."

"It won't work!"

"Just let me try, please, Jules."

Juliet sighed, "Okay. The end of the week, and that's it."

Shaw nodded, "Thank you." He closed his eyes, as he pulled Juliet into his arms. Four days wasn't a long time, but four days was all he had to change her mind, and dammit he was going to do everything he had to do to achieve just that.

* * *

Lassiter peered out the window of his sixth floor hotel room. The skyline in Pittsburgh was beautiful at night, that much he had to admit. However, Pittsburgh wasn't Santa Barbara … Pittsburgh wasn't _home. _

"Well, you've become much less awkward." He could hear the grin on her face, before he even turned around. Lassiter couldn't say that he was in love with Lucinda, mainly because a few weeks together after years apart, is just simply not enough time to distinguish such things. However, Lassiter did have some feelings for her. At first, he had been angry at her, it was unfair of her to keep his daughter from him like that. However, the more time they spent together, and the more he got to know Julie, the more he realized that whatever he had felt for her before she got reassigned, still lingered.

Lassiter simply shrugged his shoulders, a small smile creeping onto his lips. Something that he had been doing a lot more recently. It was something that had started to come out not long before him and Juliet had been put on Julie's kidnapping case. He blamed that damn adorable Spencer baby for the increased gooeyness in his heart. However, he couldn't condemn the gooeyness, not since it helped aid him with connecting, albeit slowly, with Julie.

"It was bound to happen. Can't say I'm unhappy." The smile still danced on his lips, as he looked at his sleeping daughter. "However-"

Lucinda held up a hand, "No. You can't just waltz into our lives, turn them upside down, and merely just waltz back out. I won't allow it."

Lassiter growled, those feelings only went so far, before Lucinda's more annoying qualities reared their ugly heads, and he found himself annoyed with her. "Can you ever just let me finish talking before you jump to conclusions?" He waited a beat, until she crossed her arms over her chest and nodded. He pushed forward. "This place is nice, but its not home for me. Santa Barbara is home. I have a life there. I have a job and friends, who like to pretend their family, whatever. What I'm trying to say is that I want to go back to Santa Barbara, Lucinda, and I want you and Julie to come with me. I'm not saying that it'll be perfect, and I'm not saying that you won't annoy me to the very depths of my soul. What I am saying is that I'd like to try to be a family, but for that to happen I have to feel at home. There is only one place that I truly feel at home, and it's most definitely not Pittsburgh."

Lucinda sighed. She had seen the way that his new partner had looked at her. Part of her wondered if there was something going on between him and her, but she had seen the wedding ring on her finger and the way that she stared at Shawn Spencer, who she could only guess to be her husband. Lucinda didn't do well with change, especially not into a potentially hostile environment.

"Your partner didn't seem to like me very well."

Lassiter shook his head. "She didn't like what you did to me. Juliet is very protective of those she cares about, you should see her with her son, its like a momma bear with a cub, scary stuff. However, she doesn't attack people, she's rational and she will hear you out before she does attack. Besides, I've been on the wrong side of a Juliet Spencer tongue lashing before, though potentially scary, her bark is much bigger than her bite. You'll be fine, I promise."

Lucinda sighed. "No promises, not until we talk to Julie about it. It has to be as much her decision as mine."

Lassiter shook his head, "I understand that, but know this. No matter what you might decide, I will be in her life. She is my daughter, and I've already missed nine years of her life, I won't miss anymore."

Lucinda smiled as she wrapped her arms around his waist. "Wouldn't dream of it, Carlton."

"Well, good." he answered back, as his arms twined around her waist as well.

* * *

_**A/N:** _Ideas, guys! I am in desperate need of ideas. I have absolutely no idea where this is headed. It is literally just dancing around in limbo, trying to stay afloat.


	5. Chapter 5

_**A/N: **_Yup! New chapter time. Now, just a warning...enjoy the fluff now because things are about to get all kinds of angsty...with the possiblity of whump. I won't say when, who, or how. What I will say is that it will be good (hopefully) and that the ending...which came to me vividly last night will be fulfilling for the entire series. Enjoy!

* * *

Shawn groaned, it was his last day to attempt to talk Juliet out of resigning, and he had nothing. He had no idea how to change her mind. He drummed his fingers against the wooden, kitchen table. Juliet had left nearly a half hour earlier, taking Brandon with her. Shawn welcomed the alone time, not that he didn't love his little family, but occasionally he needed the peace and quiet. It was one of the reasons why he used to take off so often. Generally, the open road, was the only way to achieve true peace and quiet, but that was no longer an option. Nor, would it ever be a suitable one again.

"Shawn! You called me at work. You said it was a dire emergency!" Gus stormed through the front door, letting the thick wooden door slam against the wall.

Shawn grimaced at the sickening thud, and knew that there was most likely a nice doorknob shaped hole in the wall now. He stood up, his hands up in surrender, as he took in the glower that covered Gus' face. "Dude, it is an emergency!"

Gus looked around the room, before a look of panic overtook his face. With wide eyes, he slowly turned back toward Shawn. "You lost Brandon!?" Gus practically yelled. He walked over toward the couch, and started to toss the throw pillows from their spot.

"Okay, first off, _Gus_, I am insulted. How...I just..." Shawn growled, he had rarely been rendered speechless. He hadn't liked it before, and he hated it now. "How dare you think I would lose my son!" The sound of Shawn's voice caught Gus' attention, as he paused midway through tossing the middle cushion from the couch. "Second," Shawn paused, holding up two fingers, "how tiny do you think my son is? Behind a throw pillow, Gus? Under the couch cushion?" Shawn groaned, his fingers digging into his scalp and pulling at the hair slightly. "This is who I called for help. I'm screwed."

Gus huffed loudly, his chest puffing out slightly. Shawn knew that look, he had offended Gus. Shawn couldn't find it in himself to feel bad about that, since Gus had just accused him of losing his only child.

"Shawn, I will leave." Gus' hands traveled to land on his hips.

Shawn waved a hand, "Let's not get rash, Gussy-poo. I do need help, and seeing as you're here now..." Shawn couldn't help the chuckle that popped out of his mouth.

"Not helping your cause, Shawn." Gus' eyebrow raised slightly, which only caused Shawn to laugh harder.

"Dude, you look like a chick!"

Gus let his hands drop, his mouth etched into a frown. "I am walking out that door, Shawn, unless you give me a damn good reason to stay!"

Shawn wrapped his arm around his middle, as he tried to get control over his laughter. "Okay! Alright." He took a deep breath, before standing upright again. "Juliet is going to resign from the police department tomorrow, unless I come up with a good reason why she shouldn't."

Gus nodded, "You really needed help with that?" His eyebrow furrowed.

Shawn nodded, "Yeah, I got nothing. I got less than nothing."

Gus groaned, "Well, if that's the case, Shawn, then we're both idiots."

Shawn's eyebrow cocked, "How so?"

Gus threw up his hands in surrender. "Well, if I'm going to help, let's get started."

* * *

Juliet sighed with the house key gripped tightly in her hand. She had thought that Shawn had given up on the whole _talk her out of resigning_ thing, when three days passed by without any further acknowledgment of it. That was, until she got a phone call from Gus who stated that he was going to pick up Brandon from her so that she could have a romantic meal with her husband. That was the first sign that something was up, the second was the music that she could hear wafting from the closed front door. It was their song, the song that they had danced to at their wedding reception. It was then that she realized that Shawn had put all his apples in this one basket, a smile tugged at her lips. It was nice that he cared enough to go through all this trouble, but her mind was made up.

Unable to postpone it any further, Juliet unlocked the door and pushed it open. Shawn appeared in front of her, coming from the direction of the kitchen. The smell assaulted her nostrils, and a happy smile crossed her lips before her eyebrows furrowed. "You cooked?"

Shawn chuckled, "Yeah, I may or may not have had Gus do the cooking. I wanted to have a nice meal with you, not kill you."

Juliet laughed, as she shrugged out of her jacket. She turned to walk toward the coat closet. "Shawn... why is there a hole in the wall?" She asked, before turning back toward him.

A sheepish smile crossed his lips, "I may or may not have upset Gus by telling him that it was an emergency..."

Juliet rolled her eyes, "Only you, Shawn." Her finger grazed the hole, knowing that she would be the one to end up fixing it. Continuing on toward the closet, she quickly disposed of her jacket, before turning back to a giddy looking Shawn. "So, food?"

He nodded, "Yeah, but-" he suddenly looked very nervous, as he wrung his hands together, "can we talk while we eat?"

Yeah, that's what Juliet had been afraid of. Sighing, she couldn't deny that adorable, boyish look on his face. "Yeah, I guess."

He motioned for her to follow him. She gasped lightly at the sight of their kitchen. Though looking pretty much the same, the table had a lace table runner hanging off its sides. The table was littered with their wedding china, which would normally cause for Juliet to lecture Shawn, but it just looked so beautiful. Two candles stood in the middle of the table, while the counters held the food. From the overall look of the kitchen, Shawn had worked hard to put it altogether with minimal mess. Juliet definitely had to give her husband props on this one. He had really put in the effort.

"It's beautiful," She smiled at him.

"Thank God, I thought you'd be mad that I used our wedding china." He swiped a hand against his eyebrow.

"Normally, yes, but I can't be mad about this. It's a very romantic lunch, Shawn." She leaned up and pressed her lips to his.

He reveled in the feeling of her lips against his, before pulling away. "So, let's dig in. Gus worked really hard on all of this, and it was a chore to not poke around the food a bit while I was waiting for you to get home."

Juliet shook her head, before sitting down in her chair. Shawn shoved it into place, before grabbing her plate and loading it with food. He quickly sat it down in front of her, before doing the same with his plate and sitting down at the table. They ate in silence for a while, and Juliet moaned as the flavors from the food mixed together on her tongue.

Shawn cleared his throat, and Juliet noticed that he had stopped eating. "So, the, uh, talking."

Juliet normally would have chuckled at Shawn's current state. She hadn't seen him so nervous, not in a long time. In fact, the only two times she had seen him so nervous had been when he had proposed, and on their wedding day. However, dread settled in her stomach as she knew what was coming. She dropped her fork, before leaning her head against her hand.

Shawn's mouth bobbed open and closed a couple of times, before he sighed. "Look, Jules, I know you want more than just me telling you to not give up your career, and I get it. I do. It's just, there isn't a whole lot else that I can do or say. Which is why I called Gus, I needed help, and he was actually very helpful. Do you remember that case at the comic book convention?"

Juliet groaned, it was worse than she thought. Shawn was going to bring up all their cases that they worked together. Sometimes she really hated his photographic memory. "Of course." She whispered. It had been the first time that she had trusted him fully. The first time that she had asked him wholeheartedly for his help.

"How did you feel when you found the people that had gone missing before the pyrotechnics went off?"

Juliet sighed deeply, she really did hate his photographic memory. She glared at him, a look that said that she knew where he was headed with this. "I felt good, like I was doing what I was meant to do. That I was able to take command of the situation without the chief and Lassiter's help. That I was able to locate those people, with your help of course, before they were killed. It felt good." Her lip trembled slightly.

Shawn nodded, "And the undercover college case? How did you feel when you realized what had actually happened with that?"

Juliet sighed, "Terrified. I thought for sure that I was going to die-"

Shawn waved a hand, "But you got control of the situation-"

"Barely! I almost killed her!"

Shawn chuckled, "Turnabout is fair play, Jules. She tried to kill you too." He winked, before pushing forward. "The bounty hunter case-"

"Oh no, Shawn! There is no way that you can turn that one around to make me look good. I screwed that one all to hell. You saved my ass!"

Shawn nodded, "Oh believe me, I know that." He smirked, before continuing, "However, that was the first moment that I realized that I was falling for you. Not only that, but I also knew in that moment that I would do anything that I could do to never see you that unhappy ever again. Now, granted, I didn't do a very good job at that, but that's neither here nor there."

Juliet couldn't stop the smile that crossed her lips as she remembered their bout of close talking. "Fair enough."

Shawn's nerves calmed considerably, as he leaned forward. "The Camp Tikihama case? You saved my ass that time, big time."

Juliet nodded, "How long are you going to do this?"

He smirked, "Until you change your mind. Remember, I have a photographic memory, this could take a while."

She sighed, "Shawn..." She paused, pinching the bridge of her nose, "you have to understand why I'm doing this. Yes, I love my job and I'm good at it. I get that, I do. That doesn't change the fact that my job is dangerous. I am tired of risking my life, not knowing if I'll make it home to my family. Not to mention the fact that I want more children, Shawn. Can you honestly sit there and tell me that you would be happy staying at home taking care of our children?"

Shawn's mouth bobbed open, but no words came out. He loved his son, and Shawn couldn't deny the butterflies that bounced around inside his stomach when Juliet said she wanted more children. However, Shawn knew that he couldn't answer that question truthfully, not if he was going to actually change her mind.

"Shawn?" Juliet's eyebrow raised suspiciously.

Heaving a sigh, Shawn let his head hang. "No."

"See. We both can't be out there risking our lives-"

Shawn's eyebrow raised, "No. I don't want to do consultant thing again. I'm done with that. Just, by no, I meant that I might want to be alone sometimes. I crave peace and quiet sometimes, but I could be happy staying home, Juliet. I would be happier doing that, than you would be giving up your career. You are making a rash decision, Jules. One that you won't be able to take back. Can you honestly say that you would be happy if you weren't a cop anymore?"

Juliet blanched, he had her. She knew that eventually she would crave the adventure of a case, but she had been willing to deal with that when the time came if it that was what it took to ensure that Shawn stayed safe. Swallowing thickly, she knew she couldn't lie to him. He had been completely honest with her, she sighed. "No, Shawn, I can't." She groaned, as she lay her head against her arms.

"Then don't give it up. I know that deep down that the reason you're doing this is because of me. I swear to you, Juliet, I'll stay out of it."

She looked up, a slow smile crossing her lips. "Swear?" he nodded, "Okay, I won't turn in my resignation. However, if you break this promise, Shawn, I will turn in my resignation."

"That's fair, Juliet." He smiled at her, as she smiled back.


	6. Chapter 6

Juliet sighed as she straightened her skirt. She tried to figure out how she had let Shawn talk her into this. She had been so set on turning in her badge, and he had gone and charmed her into staying on the force. It wouldn't be the same as before. As far as she knew Lassiter was still gone, more than likely not coming back. That only meant that she would get a new partner, and aside from her transfer into the department, the new partner thing had never really worked out well in the past. Either they were dirty cops, or they were slightly unhinged, there was never a hard working, honest one to come and help out.

She had called the chief the night of her romantic lunch with Shawn, and explained that she would be returning to duty. However, she had went on to explain that she would like to have a few added days to get things ready for her return to work. Mainly, for someone to keep an eye on Shawn for a little while. She knew he meant well with his promise to keep his nose out of her work business, she didn't entirely trust him to keep his promise. He had broken far too many of them in the past. Karen had granted her an extra week off, with the promise that she would come back at a hundred percent.

"Detective Spencer!" McNab called.

It had taken him a while to get back on his feet after he had been shot. His wife had tried to talk him into turning his badge, fearful that she would lose him once and for all. She had also been very thankful of Shawn for saving Buzz's life. Juliet smiled softly.

"Hey, Buzz! How're you feeling?" She asked, eying his chest for a moment.

He shrugged, "I'm doing pretty good. All done with physical therapy, just waiting to be cleared for full duty..." He sighed, as he scratched at his chin. "I heard some rumors..."

Juliet held up a hand to silence him. "I was thinking of quitting, but Shawn wouldn't hear of it. You know how persuasive he can be."

Buzz nodded, "Well, I'm glad that Shawn talked you into staying. This place wouldn't be the same without you. Tell Detective Lassiter I said hi." Buzz smiled, before waving his goodbye and walking away.

Juliet watched him leave the building, her eyebrow creased with confusion. Did Buzz not know that Lassiter was in Pittsburgh?

"Juliet, it is about time!"

A smile slowly crept onto her lips, as she turned to face the familiar voice. He looked practically the same as he had before, not that she expected him to look any different. Perhaps a little less gruff, but it appeared that not even a young daughter could break down the gruffness that walled up her partner and his heart. Throwing caution to the wind, Juliet stalked forward and threw her arms around Lassiter's neck. "I have missed you, Carlton."

Lassiter tried to pry Juliet's arms off of him, "For the love of sweet lady justice, Juliet, let go!"

Juliet chuckled as she pulled away, "It is so nice to see that Pittsburgh hasn't changed you..." She paused, her eyebrow raising slightly, "I expect an explanation, by the way."

Lassiter glowered, "Of course you do."

Together, they turned toward the bullpen and walked back to his desk. Shawn had been right in changing her mind, she felt whole again, just being in that building with her partner at her side.

* * *

Shawn sighed as he stared at his son. Brandon gurgled loudly, his tiny fists swinging around in the air. He had no idea what to do, Juliet had only been gone for a few hours, but in that time he had fed and changed his son. They had sat and watched the most horrible children's show that had ever graced Shawn's eyes. He eyed the clock wearily, before groaning. Juliet wasn't due home for another five hours, and this was the longest that Shawn had ever been alone with Brandon. They only had one vehicle, which Juliet currently had since Shawn had refused to get up and drive her to work. Gus was doing double his shift today, so that he could take the following day off to hang out with Shawn. He was at a loss.

"What does mommy usually do?" Shawn let his head fall against his folded hands. "I seriously cannot be this bad at this. I've watched Juliet, but with no car...our only choice is doing something here, and I am sorry, buddy, but I cannot sit through another one of those cartoon things. Pretty sure those Wiggles are going to give me nightmares tonight."

Brandon gurgled loudly, a big smile on his face.

"Ah, glad to see you're entertaining yourself, because I am bored. Bad things happen when daddy gets bored."

Brandon laughed, as he clapped his small hands together, eliciting another laugh from him. Shawn grinned at his son as he stood up, he was almost to Brandon's high chair when there was a light knock on the door.

"Don't move, buddy." Shawn whispered, placing a light kiss to Brandon's wispy blonde hair.

He turned around and walked toward the door. Looking through the peephole, Shawn's face scrunched up in confusion. Twisting the knob, Shawn threw the door open.

"Lucinda?" Shawn questioned, as he peered around for the tall, lanky frame of Lassiter. When he came up empty, his eyes roamed back toward Lucinda.

"Hi, Shawn. I wanted to stop by and see how you were doing."

Shawn's brow wrinkled in confusion, before sighing. "Please, come in." Shawn swept the entrance of his house, beckoning Lucinda into the house. Lucinda stepped over the threshold, with Julie on her heels, as Shawn closed the front door.

"I never got the chance to thank you... properly." Lucinda said, before facing Shawn.

Shawn smiled softly, his arms crossed over his chest. "It wasn't a problem."

Lucinda scoffed at him, rolling her eyes. "You might not remember much, but you are definitely still Shawn Spencer."

Shawn's eyebrows lifted at that. "Oh yeah, how so?"

Lucinda smiled at him, "No matter how annoying you were for the short amount of time I knew you. I could tell that you had a good heart. You hid behind that jackass front, but it was noticeable for anyone willing to take the extra time to look."

Shawn grinned at her. Juliet had said the same thing to him once, not too long after they had started to date. He had gotten a streak of utter bravery and asked her what exactly she saw in him. She had smile softly, her hand clasped tightly in his as she tugged him to a stop. Looking at him, a serious expression on her face, she used her free hand to brush her thumb across his cheek. _You're amazing, Shawn. You hid behind your jokes, and you pretend to be stupid but anyone who cares enough to look past all of that is able to see who you really are. You have a good heart, Shawn Spencer and you care. Why else would you be willing to put yourself in danger to do what you do? That is what I see in you._

It was in that moment, with the moonlight twinkling brightly, lighting up her blue eyes, that Shawn had fallen head over heels in love with Juliet. It was in that moment that he had realized that she was it for him, that he would eventually marry her, because he knew that no one else would be willing to look past his walls to find what was hidden on the other side.

"Why are you grinning like an idiot? You're making me rethink my opinion," Lucinda smiled softly.

Shawn shook his head slightly, pulling himself from the past and back to the present. "Sorry, you aren't the first person to tell me that."

Lucinda's smile grew slightly, "Juliet?" Her eyebrow raised.

Shawn nodded softly, "She saw that side of me, before I even realized that it was there. I mean—God, I sound like a moron! I obviously knew it was there, but before Juliet had mentioned that it was the reason that she gave me a chance, I was less likely to actually pull it out. You know?"

Lucinda nodded, her mouth bobbed open just as a shrill scream cut through the air.

"Sorry," Shawn said softly, before turning toward his son.

He hadn't noticed that Julie had wandered over toward Brandon, but there she was, standing beside his high chair. She looked up at Shawn with Lassiter-filled eyes, like a kid who's hand got caught in the cookie jar.

"Oh, he's fine, Julie." Shawn smiled softly, before wandering over toward Brandon and pulling his son into his arms. "He just doesn't do well around people he doesn't know." Shawn eyed the clock again, and groaned. "Give me like five minutes? I need to get him down for his nap. Please, make yourselves at home." Shawn said softly, before walking toward Brandon's nursery.

Lucinda smiled softly, she knew her first impression of Shawn had been correct and seeing him with Brandon only proved it.

* * *

Lassiter sighed loudly, causing Juliet's head to snap up. In a matter of hours she had gone from uncomfortable about returning to work to feeling like she had never left. Lassiter's loud sighs were only helping that feeling.

"What is it, Carlton?"

He looked at her, and what she saw worried her. It was like he didn't want to tell her, and that infuriated her. Prior to Lucinda walking back into his life, Lassiter had never had a problem talking to her about stuff before.

"It's Lucinda."

Juliet fought the urge to roll her eyes, and settled for nodding. "What about her?"

"She isn't comfortable in Santa Barbara, but I can't leave."

Juliet realized what he was trying to say. Lucinda didn't want to be here, but Lassiter did and she had custody of his daughter. Lassiter was literally caught between a rock and a hard place.

"Have you talked to her about it?"

He nodded, "Yeah I have. She said that she could be okay with Santa Barbara if she felt like you didn't hate her guts."

Juliet's brow furrowed. She wasn't Lucinda's biggest fan, in fact she particularly detested the way that Lucinda had played Lassiter, but she didn't hate the other woman. Disliked her? Hell, yeah, but she didn't hate her. She stood up and walked over toward Lassiter's desk. Kneeling down, she poked his arm to get his attention. "Listen to me. I don't hate her. I don't particularly like her, but I don't hate her."

This time his brow furrowed, "What gives you the right to not like her? She hasn't done anything to you."

"Yeah, you're right, she hasn't. However, she did hurt you. You're family, Carlton. You're my partner, and as much as you might not want to admit it, you are family to us. So when someone hurts you, they hurt me. When I saw you cry, it was like someone sucker punched me in the gut. So, no matter what, after that moment, I couldn't like her. I didn't hate her, but I didn't like her. Still don't...but I am willing to try if that's what it takes for you to stay here, in Santa Barbara."

Lassiter nodded, "Okay, but I know she'll ask me for a good will gesture."

Juliet fought the urge to roll her eyes again, as she slowly started to dislike Lucinda more with each new thing that Lassiter said. She swallowed the retort that bubbled up her throat, and smiled, "Of course! How about dinner. The two of you and the two of us."

Lassiter's eyes widened, "Can't we leave Spencer out of this?" He whined.

Juliet grinned, "Nope. Me and Shawn are a packaged deal, at least according to this," Juliet paused, pointing to the wedding ring on her finger. "So suck it up."

Lassiter groaned, "Fine. I knew I should have stopped you from marrying that idiot."

Juliet just rolled her eyes, and playfully punched Lassiter's arm. She had missed this more than she had even realized.

* * *

Shawn sighed, as he softly closed the door. So the five minute wait had turned into nearly a half hour, he would obviously have to apologize for that and offer take-out. He didn't think that an apology would work well if he ended up poisoning his guests. He turned around and walked back into the living room. His brow furrowed when he found the room empty. Shawn had been nearly certain that he had heard the springs in the couch bounce when he had entered Brandon's room. Though, he would have been lucky to hear someone scream his name over Brandon's loud screaming.

Once he was fully in the room, he did a quick scan. It was definitely empty, except. Something was off, something was wrong. He squinted his eyes as he concentrated harder, before he picked it up. Lucinda's purse was sitting on the floor. One thing he had picked up from Juliet was that a woman never leaves without their purse. He swallowed thickly, as he walked around the living room, making sure not to touch anything. Once he circled back to the front of the room, he noticed it. It was sitting slightly at an awkward angle on the coffee table, but he knew it hadn't been there before.

Stalking quickly to the kitchen, Shawn rummaged through the drawer before pulling on a pair of rubber gloves. Moving quickly, Shawn stood in front of the coffee table again, before he lifted the neatly folded piece of paper. Unfolding it, Shawn read the words to himself. He shook his head, trying to make sense of the words.

_You took my husband from me, so I took your wife and child. _

There was no more information, nothing. Just the one single line. What Shawn was most unsure of...was this letter meant for him or Lassiter?

* * *

_**So, anyone want to venture a guess as to who took Lucinda & Julie?**_


	7. Chapter 7

**_A/N:_**So, this one is WAY late, I apologize. I've been super busy lately, and then I got sick and didn't particularly feel like doing much of anything. So I apologize for the lateness. Please enjoy this chapter!

* * *

Shawn slowly started to pace the living room floor. His eyes studied the sheet of paper in his hands. They gripped the thin sheet of paper so tightly that he feared it might tear. Sitting it down, he ran his hands through his hair. He didn't understand the letter at all. If it was meant for him, then they took the wrong woman and child, and if it was for Lassiter then they needed to get their facts straight. Even still, if it was meant for Lassiter, why would they leave the letter in his house?

"This is-" Shawn grunted in frustration. "It makes no sense! None!"

Shawn knew what he had to do, and he knew if he waited any longer than Lassiter would kill him even more so then he probably already would. Grabbing his cell phone, Shawn sighed, this was not going to be a fun conversation. Hitting the correct speed-dial, he waited a couple of beats until her cheery voice rang through the phone.

"Jules, don't be mad."

"What did you do?" Her voice was stern, and he could all but hear her eyebrow quirk as she spoke.

"Lucinda came to visit, she brought Julie along with her. I left them in the living room while I put Brandon down for his nap..." Shawn paused, as he pulled his lip between his teeth and started to bite it. "When I came back into the living room, Lucinda and Julie were gone. Lucinda's purse was still on the floor, and I found a note. Someone took them, and I'm pretty sure that whoever did it, meant to grab you and Brandon."

Juliet swallowed thickly before replying, "We're on our way, Shawn. Just stay put."

"Okay." Shawn breathed out as tears pricked his eyes. If anything happened to Lucinda and Julie it would be his fault, and Shawn didn't even know what he had done wrong.

* * *

"You idiot!" She screamed, her hands balled into fists, shaking at her sides. "I gave you one damn job, and you couldn't even get that right!"

His head hung as he took a backward step. His shaggy blonde hair flopped into his face, shielding his eyes. In that moment he couldn't have been more thankful for anything else, because in that moment his hair was shielding the tears that had formed in his eyes. He couldn't say when, but at some point he had fallen in love with her, his stepmother. It was weird, and it was wrong, but he couldn't help it. She had always been so flirty with him, brushing her hand against his arm or chest. He saw how she looked at his father though, and he knew that she had loved him.

"I'm—sorry." He stuttered out finally.

"Sorry doesn't fix this mistake. Does this look like a police detective with an infant? I don't know about you Michael, but an infant is not the same as a nine-year-old girl. Not to mention the fact that the infant is a baby boy!"

Michael thrust his hands up in defense, "So I'll just take them back. Grab the right ones. It's not a big deal."

She laughed, it sounded almost diabolical, like someone had taken too many laps on the crazy train. He was slowly starting to realize where he had gone wrong, falling in love with this woman was the entire problem. Not only was she his stepmother, but she had slipped right off her rocker, and probably hit her head on the way down into crazyville. "Yeah, that'll fix it. Let us forget about the fact that they saw your face. I mean, if you want to go to jail, fine by me. Maybe then you can find someone to beat some sort of intelligence into you."

Michael felt his hands ball into fists, twisting his head sideways, he flicked his hair back so that she could see the anger blazing in his eyes. "I am so sick of you dogging on me. I am a sixteen-year-old boy...not Einstein!"

"That's damn right. Your poor father is probably rolling over in his grave right now."

Michael swallowed thickly, as tears threatened again. When it came to his father he had mixed feelings. While the woman in front of him was far too far gone on the crazy train, Michael still had his wits about him. He had seen the news reports, seen what his father had done, and while he would always love his father. He would always mourn his father's death, but he understood why it had happened.

"Marsha!" Michael yelled out, "You understand that my father killed an ex-cop, attempted to murder a police detective, her unborn child, and her husband. I don't hate him, but I can't say that what happened wasn't deserved..."

Marsha lurched forward, her hand making solid contact with Michael's face. "Take that back!"

Michael growled at her, "No! He was a murderer, and quite frankly, Marsha, if you plan on killing that woman and her child, then I'm out. I didn't want to kidnap them to begin with, but murder? No. That is just-"

Marsha glared at Michael, before kicking him in the knee. As he crumpled to the ground, grabbing his knee and hissing in pain, Marsha used the moment to grab one of the many pieces of wood behind her. Swinging it madly, a satisfied smile crossed her lips as the piece of wood connected with Michael's head. "I suppose I'll just have to kill you all. Your father was a good man. Shawn Spencer will regret the day that he shot Garrett Marshall."

* * *

Juliet hung up the phone, and stared at Lassiter. He stood with his hip against her desk. His arms crossed over his chest as he stared down at her. Her mouth bobbed open and closed a couple of times, before the words came to her. She wasn't entirely sure how he was going to react but it wasn't going to be good. Sighing, she chose her words. "That was Shawn."

He nodded, "I gathered as much. It was your tone I didn't like." His eyebrow raised expectantly.

"Lucinda went to visit him, to thank him for saving you and Julie..." Lassiter merely nodded, and it still shocked Juliet just how willing he was to admit to the fact that Shawn had indeed saved his life. "He went to put Brandon down for his nap, when he went back into the living room..."

Lassiter shook his head, and Juliet wondered briefly how he wasn't dizzy from the quick movements of his head. "No."

"Lucinda and Julie were gone. He knew something was wrong when he noticed that Lucinda's purse was still sitting on the floor. He spotted a note not long after that. Shawn thinks that they grabbed the wrong person. He thinks that they meant to grab me and Brandon, since he's pretty positive that the note is meant for him."

Lassiter swallowed thickly, as he allowed Juliet's words sink in. Someone had taken his little girl again, what in the hell was wrong with the world? Stealing little children, because you're angry at the person that the child belongs to. He realized quickly that while it was heartbreaking that someone had stolen Julie again, that it could have been worse. Julie was quite a defiant little girl, strong-willed and bullheaded, much like her mother. If they had grabbed Brandon like they had meant to...He could even finish that thought.

"Carlton, please...talk to me."

He pinched the bridge of his nose and screwed his eyes closed. Lassiter could feel a migraine coming on, and it was only his first day back. Cracking on eye open, he peered at his partner. He saw the worry and sadness written on her face. They were going to get Lucinda and Julie back, that much he knew from the look on Juliet's face. "Let's get to your house. Talk to Spencer, and have a look at the note ourselves. Does Shawn have any idea who could be targeting him?"

Juliet sighed, "Well, the list could be long. I don't really know. It doesn't help that Shawn still hasn't fully regained his memory. From what he told me, it sounds like an angry wife out for vengeance for Shawn taking her husband away."

Lassiter nodded, "You're right. That could be a long list. We'll examine his case files after we talk to him. We also might want to get him and Brandon some place safe. If she didn't grab the right person, then she might go after Shawn specifically next time."

Juliet nodded. It was exactly what she was worried about, but no matter if she had or hadn't been at the station today, this woman would have still struck against Shawn. Matter of fact, if she had turned in her badge, then the woman probably would have grabbed the correct mother and child. "Let's go." Juliet finally said.

* * *

Shawn was pacing the floor when Juliet pushed the door open. Without so much as a second thought, Shawn crossed the living room in three long strides and pulled Juliet into his arms. He felt like breaking down right then, but he knew that Lassiter and Juliet needed him to be strong. To talk to them and answer their questions.

"Spencer." Lassiter's voice was gruff coming from behind him.

Shawn felt bad, as he turned around toward Lassiter. "I am so sorry. If I knew-"

Lassiter waved him off. "You had no reason to believe that some whack-job was out there, wanting their left-over revenge on you."

Shawn nodded, "If I hadn't left the room."

Lassiter shrugged, "Then they would have you too, and we would have been none the wiser until Juliet came home tonight after her shift."

"I'll do whatever I can to help."

Lassiter smiled softly, and Shawn was taken aback. Lassiter was being calm and nice to him? That was so out of character for the typically gruff detective that Shawn thought he had been dropped into the twilight zone.

"Where is the note?" Lassiter asked, and waited as Shawn handed over the small slip of paper. Pulling it open, he read over the lazy scrawl and groaned. It was as vague as Juliet had made it seem. How had Shawn taken her husband? Had he put him in jail or killed him? If they at least had that much information then it would be an easier investigation. Especially if it was someone that Shawn had killed, because as far as Lassiter knew, Shawn had only actually killed one person, and that had been a pure act of self defense. "This is it? No clue as to who the husband might be, or how you might have taken the husband away?"

Shawn shook his head, "That is all I found, aside from the fact that Lucinda's purse was still on the floor." Shawn pointed it out.

Lassiter walked toward it, before pulling on a pair of gloves. He pulled up the small leather purse and examined it. When he noted there was nothing different about the outside of the purse, he pulled it open and rifled through the contents that lay inside. After a few moments, when he was about to retract his hand, he pulled out another small slip of paper. He knew the name scrawled across the sheet of notebook paper, but the thing was, Shawn wouldn't.

"What is it, Carlton?" Juliet called out.

Lassiter rocked back on his heels, pulling himself back to a standing position, before eying Juliet carefully. "We need to get this," Lassiter held out the purse, "checked for fingerprints. Also, have you discussed with Shawn who Garrett Marshall is?"

Juliet's head nodded back and forth, as Shawn stared between the two detectives. "Why?"

"Because I'm pretty sure that it's his wife that took Lucinda and Julie."

Juliet's brow furrowed in confusion, "And how do you know that?"

He held up the slip of paper, and Juliet gasped. Shawn took a step forward and examined the paper. Scrawled across it in sloppy handwriting was one simple name; Garrett Marshall.

Shawn nodded his head, "I think Lassiter might have been onto something."

Lassiter groaned, "Oh fantastic. Spencer found his sense of humor again." He rolled his eyes, even though he knew deep down if anyone was going to find Lucinda and his daughter it would be the man in front of him.

* * *

_**A/N:** _So, I found a way to bring the series full circle...I'm quite proud of myself for that fact. So, enjoy the lunacy, because Marsha is bat-crap crazy!


	8. Chapter 8

Lucinda huddled in the corner of the small closed off room. From the looks, she would guess that it was a room made out of the basement. The floors were cold, hard concrete, as were the walls. One small cot sat in the middle of the room. Julie was curled up on it at the moment. Occasionally a whimper drifted from the small bed, but mostly she was just quiet.

She didn't quite understand what had happened. She and Julie had been sitting on Shawn's couch, waiting for him to put his son down, when the door had opened, barely squeaking. Lucinda's head had twisted to see who it was, and was met with a baseball bat to the side of her skull. The blood on the side of her face had long since dried up, but the pain was still very present. Julie had appeared to be injury free, which made her assume that she had been chloroformed. While she would rather have Julie be safe and sound, knowing that she hadn't been physically harmed did make her feel a little better.

It didn't make sense as to why he had taken the two of them though. She had heard the young boy yell something about avenging his father. That Shawn Spencer would pay, but Lucinda didn't understand why Shawn would pay for the boy taking her and Julie. Shawn didn't actually have any ties to the two of them.

Just as Lucinda's thoughts circled around for what felt like the hundredth time, she heard the big, heavy, metal door creak open. A tall, masked figure stalked inside, dragging someone in by their feet. One quick glance in Lucinda's direction and the figure disappeared, the door slamming shut behind them.

Julie jerked awake, screaming as tears spilled down her cheeks. "Mom!" She yelled, clutching her knees to her chest.

Lucinda pushed herself to her feet, swaying slightly before stumbling toward the cot. Lucinda sat down heavily, her vision swimming into murky depths. "It's alright, baby." Lucinda's voice was soft as she practically cooed at her daughter. Julie pulled Lucinda's arm up, and climbed onto her lap.

"I'm scared, mom. Are we going to die?"

Lucinda stared ahead, as she thought about a way to answer that. She could lie, she should lie. Telling her nine-year-old daughter that it was a likely possibility was not the right way to go. Julie would only freak out. Yet, the thought of lying to her daughter...making her think that they were safe and the inevitable happening. Lucinda shook the thought from her mind, causing the dark spots to grow larger.

"Your father will find us, he will." Lucinda decided to go with a half-truth. At least that was a promise she could keep. Carlton would find them, it was just unknown how exactly he would find them.

* * *

Shawn let out a frustrated yell, as his hands grabbed hold of his hair in fistfuls. He was pacing back and forth in the living room. He could hear Brandon screaming, but he couldn't calm his overworking brain. Darting around from thought to thought, as slowly he came to the realization that whatever happened to Lucinda and Julie was his fault. Not only was it bad enough that he had no memory of what he was being accused of, but he hadn't been paying attention when he was putting Brandon down. The old Shawn would have been able to pick up on what had happened. Granted, he would have walked in on the kidnapping in progress, but he would have at least been able to keep Lucinda and Julie safe.

"Shawn!"

He barely heard the voice over the racing thoughts driving through his head. His temples were pounding, but he refused to stop. Stopping would only result in Lucinda and Julie getting hurt or being gone much longer than they needed to.

"Shawn Spencer!" Gus practically screamed, as he grabbed a hold of both of Shawn's wrists, pulling him to a halting stop.

Shawn glared at Gus, before sighing. "What?"

"Aside from the fact that your child is screaming bloody murder?"

Shawn's face dropped from determined to defeated in a matter of seconds. With his head hanging, Shawn pushed himself forward until he was standing beside Brandon's crib. "Hey, buddy. It's okay."

Brandon gurgled around the small fist shoved in his toothless mouth, causing Shawn to smile softly at him.

"Oh, I wish it were that simple."

The voice sent chills down Shawn's spine. With his eyes closed, he turned around. "Let me guess, you're Garrett Marshall's wife?"

Marsha Marshall stepped out from the shadows, with a creepy smile on her face. "The one and only. I loved my husband, Mr. Spencer. Do you know what it feels like to have someone stolen from you, someone that you love, that you never get to say goodbye to?"

Shawn sneered at Marsha, a self-deprecating smile on his face. "My father. Your husband killed him in cold blood, and framed me for the crime. I win."

Marsha's features darkened as she crept toward him. "This isn't a game, Mr. Spencer. If it were, then I would win."

Shawn stood strong, unmoved by Marsha's continued creep toward him. "How so, Crazy-McCreepypants?"

Marsha screamed, "You are infuriating!"

Shawn shrugged, "Not the first time I've been told that," he cracked a smile, "Won't be the last either, since I do plan on killing you, much like I did your husband. You won't win this weird game, Mrs. Marshall."

Marsha's head cocked sideways as she heard heavy footsteps, she was running out of time. "I had hoped you would be alone. I did have to wait an awfully long time for that incompetent fool and your wife to leave the house." Marsha stopped just in front of Shawn, "Oh well, I suppose this means I'll just have to take you with me." Marsha's face split into such a large smile that Shawn cringed away from her. "Goodnight, Mr. Spencer." Marsha said.

Shawn didn't notice the weapon in her hand until it was too late. His last conscious thought was that Juliet was going to be pissed, even if he did technically keep his promise. His world blacked out as he crumpled to the floor. In the deep recesses of his mind, Shawn could hear Brandon screaming, before his world went completely dark.

* * *

Shawn groaned as he slowly started to wake up. A thin line of light illuminated the otherwise dark, gloomy room. From what he could tell, his arms were tied behind his back and his legs were tied to the chair he was sitting on. Lifting his head, Shawn took in his surroundings and gasped.

"Thank God!" Shawn's voice was merely a whisper, the pounding in his head was causing his vision to turn fuzzy at the edges. "You're alive."

Lucinda turned toward the voice, as she watched Julie approach the shadowy figure on the chair. "Shawn?"

"Yeah." He called out, as Julie reached up and touched his face.

"You're the man that saved me before."

Shawn nodded his head, and hissed at the throbbing pain. "I am indeed, Julie. Do you think you can untie my arms?"

Julie nodded, a smile on her face. "Are you here to save me and my mommy?"

Shawn looked up at Lucinda who had long since stood up, and was crouched in front of him, as she stripped off the tape around his legs. "I am going to try my hardest, Julie."

"My daddy says that you're a brave man. Brave but stupid."

Shawn chuckled, "Yeah, that sounds like good ol' Lassie-poo."

Julie peeked around to look at Shawn. Her eyebrows were drawn up in confusion, "Who is Lassie-poo?"

Shawn's mouth went to open as Lucinda smacked his leg. "Ow!" He hissed, eying his leg that was stinging from the direct contact of Lucinda's hand against his skin.

"It's nothing, honey." Lucinda spoke loud enough for Julie to hear, before her gaze narrowed at Shawn, "Do not teach her that! Carlton will kill you himself."

Shawn attempted a shrug, "When doesn't he want to kill me?"

Lucinda nodded, a smile tugging on her lips. "You have a point." A sigh sounded from Lucinda, as the ropes that were binding Shawn's arms behind him fell away. "So, what's the plan?"

Shawn stood up as he rubbed his raw wrists. He noticed for the first time the body slumped against the far wall. "Who's that?"

"He said his name is Michael Marshall."

Shawn's brow furrowed, as his eyes narrowed. Stalking forward, Shawn cocked his head, "Cover Julie's eyes." Shawn spat over his shoulder. As he approached Michael, the boy's eyes flew open. Shawn grabbed Michael by the collar and hefted him to his feet. "Did you do this?" Shawn asked.

"N-no, sir." Michael stammered as his eyes glanced around wildly.

"You're lying! Did you do this?" Shawn's voice raised an octave.

Michael shook his head, "I helped her grab the woman and the girl. When I told her I didn't want to be apart of it anymore, she hit me over the head and locked me up down here."

Shawn glared at Michael for a moment, before sighing and releasing his grip. "You're Garrett Marshall's son?"

Michael nodded, "Yeah. I never did agree with her plan, I just..." He let his head hang as his cheeks flushed pink. "Have you ever made a mistake?"

Shawn nodded, "Yeah, a big one. I lied to a lot of people, hurt them really badly. I also..." Shawn sighed as he kicked his foot against the wall. Tears building in his eyes, before he continued, "I got really mad at my dad. I stopped talking to him for the longest time. I never got the chance to apologize to him before he died. I never even got the chance to say goodbye."

Michael nodded, "I know that feeling. I didn't want to apologize to my dad...I would have liked the chance to forgive him. I think that he deserved to be punished for his crimes..." Michael's eyes lit up as Shawn's story really settled in. He looked up at Shawn, a frown etched on his lips. "Oh, God. You're Shawn Spencer."

Shawn nodded, before hissing and grabbing a hold of his aching head. "In the flesh."

"She did this, didn't she? Marsha is psychopathic. She'd rather kill us all then see us go free. Luckily, I grew up in this house. If we work together, we might be able to make it out of this alive."

Shawn nodded, "I think we can do that." Shawn patted Michael's shoulder. "I don't blame you for what your father did, but I will never be able to forgive him for what he did. Also, Michael...it's not your fault that you fell in love with a psychopath. It happens, trust me."

Michael shrugged, "Not my best choice, obviously, but hopefully I can atone for my sins by helping you all get out of this alive."

"So, what's the plan, my man?"

Michael grinned, as he slid back down the wall. For once he was the brains of the operation. For once someone believed in him enough to let him lead the way. Michael was going to get them out of this stupid mess if it was the last thing he did.

* * *

Juliet stomped up the walkway to the front door. A frantic call from Gus had pulled her away from the deep research that she and Lassiter had been doing on Garrett Marshall. She had been waiting on a few reports to load up on her computer when he called. Juliet could practically hear the fear in his voice when he spoke. Without waiting for any further details other than, _Shawn is gone_, Juliet stood up from her desk. She had simply told Lassiter that there was an emergency at home, and that she would be back as soon as possible. Lassiter had enough to worry about without adding her family issues on top of that.

Shoving the front door open, Juliet peered inside. She found Gus pacing the living room floor, clutching Brandon to his chest. Tear streaks lined his cheeks. His head whipped around when she shut the door.

"Thank God! He's gone...I don't know how..."

Juliet held up a hand. She pried her son from Gus' grip and smiled at her gurgling son. "Hey baby." Juliet cooed at Brandon, before placing him in his playpen. "Now, explain."

Gus nodded, as he took a couple of calming breaths. "When I got to the house, Shawn was completely out of it. He didn't hear me yelling at him. He was in detective mode, pacing back and forth, deep in thought. I finally snapped him out of it, and told him that Brandon was screaming. Shawn took off toward Brandon's room. I thought I heard voices coming from the nursery, but I just figured that Shawn was talking to Brandon. That he was trying to calm him down. Then I heard a scream and a thud. By the time I got into the room, Shawn was gone."

Juliet's eyes drifted close as she shook her head back and forth. "No. No no. No!" She murmured softly. Peeling her eyes open slowly, she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Was there signs of a struggle?"

Gus sighed, as he ran a hand over his face before nodding. "Some drops of blood on the floor. The window was also open, but I hadn't been sure if it had been open before."

Juliet nodded, "Someone took him. We know who it is...but we've yet to locate a name or where she might be keeping her hostages."

Gus swallowed thickly, "Hostages?"

Juliet nodded, "She took Lucinda and Julie too. We'll find him Gus, we'll find all of them."

Gus nodded, "I want to help."

Juliet sighed, Lassiter wouldn't like it, but Gus was a witness at the very least. "I'm driving, and we need to drop him off at daycare." She said simply, as she picked up her son and the extra diaper bag, before heading to the door.


	9. Chapter 9

As it turned out, planning the escape of four people was easier said than done. Especially when one of those four people was a nine-year-old little girl. Every single potential escape that had been thrown out, had the potential for someone to get hurt and Shawn down right refused to act on an escape that could end with Julie getting injured.

Shawn slid down the wall, and laid his head against his knees. His thoughts, though focused on getting the people in front of him to safety, were still on his son. Shawn couldn't think of enough words to describe how eternally grateful he would be for Gus being there when Marsha had smashed him on the head. He would have never been able to forgive himself if something would have happened to Brandon because of this whole situation.

"Shawn?"

Shawn shook his head, and closed his eyes against the dizziness that overtook his vision. He slowly cracked his eyelids open and peered out to focus on who had called out to him. Smiling softly, he looked at Lucinda. "Yeah?"

"What are we going to do?" Lucinda asked, only after she threw a precautionary glance over her shoulder to ensure that Julie was still sleeping. "How are we going to get out of this?"

Shawn could hear the fear in her voice, and he didn't blame her. If he was in her shoes, he would be effectively freaked out as well. Hugging his knees to his chest, Shawn sighed. For once he didn't have a crazy scheme planned, he didn't have a way out of this. "I-" He could feel pressure on his eyes as a tear slipped down his cheek. Realization finally settling in, that he may never see his son again. He might not have the chance to apologize to Juliet for this little mishap and every other little broken promise he might have made that he didn't remember and every other one that he did remember. "I honestly...I don't know. Everything that we've come up with has the potential to be dangerous, and if it was just us three I could handle that. We're adults, we have the ability to weigh the choice and make an informed decision, but..." Shawn sighed, as he pointed, "she is just a child. Not only do I feel wrong with potentially putting her in danger, I refuse to do it."

Lucinda nodded her head, she completely understood where Shawn was coming from. It was only a point of view you could really understand if you were a parent. Suddenly when tasked to care for another living being, you see things differently. Other children, they have the potential to be your children. Despite the fact that Julie was a little girl that he knew through her parents, Lucinda was fairly certain that he would act the same way if it was any other little girl or boy. Because how Shawn was seeing it, which would be the exact same way that Lucinda would see it as well, was that if the situation was reversed and someone else was making the decision and it meant life or death for his son, Shawn would want them to err on the side of caution.

"So, you're just going to risk all of our lives?" Michael finally spoke up. His voice wasn't harsh, instead it was soft with a hint of confusion.

Shawn cocked his head, and gave the younger man a small smile. "Well, I'm going to keep thinking of a way out of this, Michael, but unless one of us can bring forth an option that doesn't put that little girl's life at stake, then yes."

Michael nodded, "I guess I can respect that. I don't want her to get hurt either, but I mean...I don't want to die either."

Shawn patted Michael's shoulder, "None of us do, Michael. I'm going to try my hardest to get all of us out of this thing alive."

Michael's head bobbed up and down softly. As Shawn's eyes grew unfocused. There was something there, on the edge of his subconscious. A way out of this for all of them, he just couldn't quite grasp it yet. He was going to try his hardest to keep his promise to Michael. Shawn was going to get them all out of this mess, he just wasn't entirely sure how to come about that just yet.

* * *

Juliet groaned as she rubbed her temples and stared at her computer screen. An hour. One long, never-ending hour, she had sat in that chair and stared at her computer screen. The initial search into Garrett Marshall's life had come up empty, much to everyone's dismay. There was no record of a wife. Further searching provided the fact that Garrett Marshall had briefly been married nearly sixteen years earlier. The marriage itself only lasted a year and a half and had produced Garrett Marshall a son. That little tidbit of information had been located almost forty-five minutes earlier. Forty-five minutes, Juliet and Lassiter had spent searching for further information into Garrett's apparent wife, and had come up empty.

"It has to be here!" Juliet finally mumbled, feeling the need to start pulling on her hair. This psychopath had her husband, she had Lassiter's daughter and...girlfriend.

"I've given up on the wife, Spencer." Lassiter called from his desk, as he turned to look at her.

"Why? That's who took them. The card..."

Lassiter shook his head, "We have found no proof, none, that the psycho ever remarried. What we do have proof of is that he had been married and apparently she had the good sense to leave him. We also know that he has a son, and psychopathic tendencies are typically inherited..."

Juliet's eyes lit up, as she stood up and walked toward Lassiter's desk. She paused briefly, tossing a glance over her shoulder. Gus had fallen asleep after he gorged himself on two and a half bags of skittles and a bag of M&M's, his head was lulled to the side and Juliet was almost certain that if she looked hard enough, that he would be drooling as well. Brandon was sound asleep in this car seat, sucking on his small fist. Turning back around, Juliet came to stand behind Lassiter's chair.

"I'm assuming you did a background check on Michael Marshall then?" Juliet asked.

Lassiter nodded, "Who names their child Michael when their last name is Marshall? That is just cruel."

Juliet shook her head and rolled her eyes, "What did you find."

Lassiter moved over a little to give Juliet a look at the screen. "Not a big list of priors, mainly just juvenile stuff. Breaking into the high school, vandalism. Nothing that screams kidnapping."

Juliet sighed, as she stared at the information, "But we have an address. Says he lives with a Marsha Sanders. Maybe she took him in after Garrett's death?"

Lassiter nodded, "It's our only lead."

"Let's go..." She paused, "I just have to wake up Gus first."

* * *

Shawn jerked forward, his head lulling sideways. His stomach heaved uncomfortably. Groaning, he sat back and noticed Lucinda walking toward him.

"Are you alright?" She asked, concern laced her voice.

"Yeah. I think so." He moaned, as his eyes drifted close. After a moment they snapped back open, and he knew instantly what had caused him to throw up. He eyed the still sleeping child on the cot as tears filled his eyes. "I know what happened," he mumbled.

Lucinda knelt in front of him, her brows furrowed. "What?" she whispered, realizing how close they were to Michael who was also asleep.

"My dream. We—uh-tried to escape. Marsha lost it..." Shawn lifted a shaky finger to point in Julie's direction, "I wasn't fast enough." The tears spilled over and down his cheeks. "I can't let anything happen to her. I know you understand that, she's your daughter."

Lucinda nodded, as she sat down. "We need a plan. Something that doesn't involve Julie getting hurt."

Shawn sat up straighter, "We've discussed every possibility, Lucinda. There is nothing..." his eyes lit up suddenly, as a thought came to him. "We've discussed everything, but one thing." His lips lifted half-heartedly, now he would be breaking his promise to Juliet. "We need a distraction. Someone to take Marsha's attention off of everyone else. When her attention is occupied, then the others can make their escape."

Lucinda sighed, "Sounds like you already know who should be that distraction."

Shawn shrugged, "It only makes sense that it should be me."

A hand reached out and touched Shawn's shoulder. Shawn screeched, before blushing. "Wow, dude you sound like a chick." The three of them chuckled lightly.

"Michael," Shawn said, his hand over his heart, "I thought you were asleep."

"I was, but I woke up. I overheard your discussion, and I should be the distraction. I could have stopped her before any of this happened, but I didn't. It's only fair."

Shawn turned toward Michael, "You can't. You are the only one capable of leading them out of this place safely."

Michael nodded, he couldn't deny that fact. "Okay, but you can't let her kill you."

Shawn smiled, "Well that would obviously be preferable. Once you guys are far enough away from this God-forsaken place, call Juliet, tell her where to find me. It's my only chance. I will try to stay alive long enough for her to get there and save me...again."

Lucinda and Michael nodded, "So...how are you getting her in here?"

Shawn grinned, "I've noticed that Marsha Marshall..." he paused, chuckling lightly while he shook his head, "She doesn't like to be irritated, it's why she clubbed me over the head. Well, also because she knew that I wouldn't be a willing participant in my own kidnapping. I figure, if we make enough noise, she'll come down."

They nodded again, this time standing up. Shawn grinned broadly as he approached the heavy, metal door. With his hands balled into fists, he started to beat against the door. "Hey PsychoMcLooneypants! I want to talk with your lunatic ass!"

Lucinda beat the chair that Shawn had been sitting on against the floor, while Julie, who had been woken by Lucinda, and Michael yelled and screamed. After a few minutes, Shawn could hear angry stomping above them. He couldn't believe his half-assed plan was actually working. Steeling himself, he waited until the door opened.

"Great, you're here. Listen..." Shawn said, as he grabbed Marsha by the shoulders and turned her away from the door. "Look, the living conditions down here are less than accommodating. I mean, if we're going to be here awhile. There is only one bed, and look..." Shawn pointed at the floor, "Someone puked on the floor. That is just not sanitary." Glancing behind Marsha, he watched as Michael slipped out last, causing him to breath out in relief.

The sound of their footsteps on the stairs caused Marsha to pull away from Shawn. She growled before turning back to Shawn. "This was all your idea wasn't it?" When Shawn just stood there, Marsha moved forward, shoving Shawn into the wall. "Answer the damn question!" Shawn merely nodded, as his hands quaked with fear. "Then you'll be the first to die." She said, matter-of-factly, before reaching out. Her hands squeezed tightly around Shawn's throat.

Shawn clawed at her hands, his shortened nails drawing blood after a few scratches. Slowly his world started to darken, until the light finally went out and his body slumped against the wall.


	10. Chapter 10

Michael reached forward and pulled Julie into his arms. He saw her, Marsha, and she had seen them. Marsha knew that they had escaped, if they didn't move quick, she would catch them. Drag them back to their deaths. He waited to hear Shawn's screams, figuring that Marsha would make quick work of the older man, but Michael heard nothing. He wasn't sure which feeling was battling for the top spot: happiness that perhaps Shawn had fought her off, or fear that she had merely locked Shawn back into the basement and was coming after them first.

"We have to move quicker, she saw us." Michael gasped out, as he maneuvered Julie in his arms so that he could grab hold of Lucinda's hand.

He pulled her behind him, his legs burning as they burst through the front door. Neither of them had a cell phone, Marsha had made sure of that. He couldn't go to the neighbor's house, Marsha would check there first. Growling, Michael made a decision and started to run down the road. His bare feet slapped the pavement hard and after a few feet he knew that his feet were bleeding. He could feel the rocks and cement digging deep into the tender flesh on the bottom of his feet. He ignored the pain and pressed forward.

"We're not going to make it far at this pace. We have to slow down!" Lucinda yelled, yanking back on Michael's arm.

He turned around, gasping for air, as he stared at Lucinda. "You don't understand!" He yelled out, as his chest heaved with each breath that he was able to pull into his oxygen deprived lungs. "If she catches us, she isn't just going to take us back, she will kill us! We have to keep moving."

Lucinda nodded, as Michael grabbed her hand again and tugged her forward. His stride slowed slightly as he pulled himself forward. His right arm was going numb under Julie's weight, but he ignored it. The end of the street was coming into view, he knew a few people that lived on either side of the next street. It would take her awhile to figure out the right house, just another block and they would stop to use the phone. Call that Juliet woman that Shawn had been talking about. Michael just prayed that it wasn't too late.

* * *

Lassiter sped down the road, his siren blaring as he careened into a right hand turn. Juliet, used to her partner's driving, held onto the door handle tightly to keep herself from flying against him. Gus moaned out, whispering something about car sick and his iron stomach. Juliet rolled her eyes as the house they were searching for came into view.

It was a quiet neighborhood, and the house was small. Single story, with a wide front porch. A garage sat off the side. As Lassiter slammed to stop in front of it, Juliet could tell that the residence was empty. No curtains hung in the windows, there was no front yard decorations. Nothing on the outside that laid claim to the empty house.

"No one lives here. It's a waste of time. Another dead end."

Lassiter's head snapped toward Juliet, "How do you know that?" he called out.

Juliet shrugged her shoulders, "No curtains in the windows. Nothing outside. It's bare."

Lassiter opened his door and stepped out. "We have no other lead, Spencer. Shall we just give up on finding them? Perhaps this Marsha Sanders used to live here? Maybe she moved recently. We could at least knock on some doors, see if anyone knows this Marsha Sanders."

Juliet nodded, Lassiter was right. She pushed her door open, before climbing out of the car. "I'm sorry." She mumbled, before opening the back door for Gus. His face was ashen, as sweat dotted his brow. "You okay?"

Gus nodded, but his hand rubbed soft circles on his stomach. "We doing something?"

Juliet grinned at him, before shaking her head. She made a move toward the house directly to the left of Marsha Sanders' supposed house when her cell phone went off. "Carlton, do you know this number?"

Lassiter stared at the number and shook his head, as he watched Juliet answer the call.

"Juliet Spencer,"

"Oh thank God! You have to help us. She'll find us! She still has Shawn. Help!"

Juliet's eyes widened, the phone nearly slipping from her lax grip.

* * *

Sirens could be heard in the distance, and Michael prayed that Marsha wouldn't realize that they were coming for her. If there was any chance that Shawn was still alive, that he would pull through this, she had to stay in the dark. Part of him had wished he had told Juliet to make a silent approach. He's pacing back and forth in the living room of his friend's house. The man is sitting on his couch watching curiously, as Lucinda stares out the window.

"She'll hear that, right?" Michael questions, as he turned back toward Lucinda.

Her head jerks up as she stares at Michael, like she hadn't just heard him talking. After a few moments of complete silence, her mouth bobs open and closed, before nodding. "Yeah. Probably." She finally muttered out. Realization hitting her hard, a sob caught in her throat. "She's going to kill him." It wasn't a question.

Michael's hands twisted tightly in his shaggy hair. He tugged lightly on the hair, just long enough for him to feel the pain, before stopping. The feel of pain had always seemed to calm his mind before, and this time was no different. His eyes snapped open, "I have to save him. I got you and your daughter to safety, now I have to do the same for Shawn." He sputtered out suddenly.

"No!" Lucinda yelled as she jumped to her feet. Her hand reached out to grab a hold of his arm. "Shawn wouldn't want that, Michael. He wouldn't want you risking your life for his."

Michael turned his wild eyes on Lucinda's. Tears slowly filled them as he shook his head. "I'm no good. This is all my fault anyways. I should have stopped her before it had a chance to get this far, but I didn't. I let her do it, knowing full well that she planned on killing you. So, yeah he probably wouldn't mind it if I traded my life for his."

Lucinda sighed, "Michael. Shawn is the person she is after the most. She wants him to pay for killing Garrett...for killing your father. Do you honestly think that she will let him live, even if you offer up a trade?"

With his hands balled into fists, Michael shoved them against his eyes. "No. Probably not, but if I go back, I can fix it. I can stop her."

Lucinda stared at Michael for a moment, her eyebrow raising. She was pretty sure that she knew exactly where he was headed with his current train of thought, but she had to hear the words. "How? How can you stop her?"

Michael smiled sadly as he shrugged his shoulders half-heartedly. "I'll kill her."

* * *

Michael's feet slapped against the concrete again. He could feel the closed cuts on the bottom of his feet opening up again. He assumed that once he found Marsha, that the pain in his feet would be the least of his worries. The main being that he'd need to wrestle the gun that he knew she carried on her, from her. The second would be actually using the gun on Marsha. He had never taken a life before, never had the need to, but sometimes there were no other options.

His foot slammed down on a particularly pointy rock, causing a sharp hiss to escape his lips. Michael limped to a stop, before pulling his foot up as high as he could. The small rock was still visible. He gripped the sides of the rock and yanked. Blood quickly poured from the wound, and the sight made Michael's stomach churn. Sighing, he threw the bloodied rock to the ground. Balling his hands into tight fists and biting his lower lip, Michael placed his injured foot onto the ground. Tears welled in his eyes at the sharp pain, but he started to move forward, trying his best to ignore the pain as he started to pick up the pace. Moving as quickly as he could in his half limp, half run, Michael reached the turn onto his street. The house was visible from the stop sign. His nose wrinkled, knowing he was at a obvious disadvantage now that he was injured, but he kept moving. Even if he had to die, he was going to do everything he could to get Shawn out of that house alive.

* * *

Lassiter's car slams to a stop in front of a white, shack of a house. He looks at Juliet, "Are you sure this is right?"

Juliet nods softly, before pulling herself from Lassiter's car. Lassiter and Gus follow suit, all three running up the small hill to the front porch of the house. Lassiter knocks hard, three times, before the door is yanked open.

"Thank God!" Lucinda cries, as she throws herself into Lassiter's arms.

"Are you okay? Did he hurt you?" Lassiter asked, before pressing a kiss to Lucinda's hair.

"I'm fine. Maybe a concussion at worse..." She paused, before pulling back, "What do you mean he?"

Lassiter stared at her, "The person that took you. He's a sixteen-year-old boy, goes by the name Michael Marshall."

Lucinda shook her head vehemently back and forth, "No! You have it wrong. Michael got me and Julie out of the house. His stepmother is the one that orchestrated the whole thing. Marsha Marshall."

Juliet stepped forward, her brow raised, "Garrett Marshall never remarried."

"I don't know about that, but Michael called her his stepmother. She's crazy..." Lucinda's head hung, "She still has Shawn. Michael left to try to save Shawn. I'm afraid she'll kill both of them."

Juliet eyed Lassiter for a moment, "You stay. I'll go get Shawn."

Lassiter shook his head, "You're my partner."

Juliet smiled, "Yeah, and you need to take care of your family. Stay. I have Gus."

Lassiter scoffed at that, "Yeah, good luck with that." He rolled his eyes, "Don't be stupid, Juliet. Let me come with you."

"No. Stay here. I have a gun and a bullet with Marsha's name written on it." Juliet held out her hand, as Lassiter pressed his keys into her hand. She offered him one last smile before turning around and walking toward his car.

* * *

Juliet twisted the wheel hard as she swerved onto the correct road, trying to locate the correct house that Lucinda has described over the phone. Spotting it, Juliet slammed on the brakes hard. Putting the car into gear, she yanked the keys from the ignition, before hopping from the car. Quickly, she pulled her gun from it's holster as she crept toward the front door. Gus cowered behind her, his head peeking over her shoulder as they continued forward. As soon as they both climbed onto the front porch, a gunshot sounded from somewhere inside the house. Juliet rushed forward, almost forgetting that Gus was with her. Quickly, she cleared the living room, she made a move for the kitchen when she heard noises coming from below them. Peering around, she spotted the door that had to lead to the basement.

She made a move for it, before putting a halting hand up. "Stay here." She whispered harshly, before pulling the door open. Juliet took the stairs as quickly as she could, and as soon as she landed at the bottom, she looked around the small basement. On her left, she spotted another door. Her eyebrow wrinkled as she moved toward it. The knob twisted, and the door flew open. With her gun drawn, Juliet leveled it as she waited for someone to come out of the room. A flurry of dark hair ran out, and Juliet pulled the trigger, once, twice, three times. The body fell to the floor with a hard thump. Juliet moved forward, and crouched beside the body. Pressing her fingers to the pulse point, she found no movement. Turning the body over, Juliet sighed. The woman's eyes were wide open. Moving her hand forward, she pressed down on the eyelids, promptly closing her eyes.

Standing up, Juliet moved forward. Two bodies littered the floor, both unmoving, one of them was definitely dead.


	11. Chapter 11

_**A/N:** _One chapter left. I've had a blast writing this series! I want to thank everyone that's stuck with me through this process. You guys are the reason that I keep writing!

* * *

Juliet stares at the wall as her foot taps against the carrier at her feet. Brandon gurgles softly as he stares his blue eyes straight back at her. She sighs softly and feels as someone grasps her hand tightly. In that moment she remembers that she isn't here alone. On her left sits Gus, his fingernails being assaulted by his teeth as his knees bounce up and down with unreleased tension. On her right sits Madeline, she's the one that has grasped her hand.

Juliet swivels her head to look at Madeline. The older woman offers her a smile, it's slightly off-putting since it doesn't quite reach her eyes.

"He's going to be okay, Juliet."

Juliet shook her head, "You don't know that. He was _so _pale. He was _so _still. I can't handle seeing him like that again, Madeline. My heart can't take it anymore. To see him so close to death."

Madeline nodded softly, "I understand that, Juliet, believe me I do. Remember, I was married to a cop. There were days when it really hit me. That he might not come home today. I couldn't handle that, not really. It was one of the reasons we divorced, because I couldn't handle the not knowing anymore."

Juliet's lips puckered out. "Does that mean that Shawn and I are doomed?"

Madeline chuckled lightly, "Of course not, dear. It just means that you have to find a way to handle it. To be okay with the fact that these things happen. Granted, they seem to happen more to my son than most others." Madeline shrugged her shoulders softly, "Shawn always was really good at getting himself into trouble. It just appears that he's finally run out of ways to talk himself out of said trouble."

Juliet sighed softly, "Thank you."

Madeline merely nodded before pointing at Brandon. "Mind if I hold onto him for a bit? Thought I'd take my grandson for a little walk."

Juliet smiled sadly, "That is quite fine, Madeline."

Madeline reached down and unfastened the straps from around Brandon's shoulders before diving her hands around his small body. She pulled him against her chest and bounced him lightly as he started to fuss. "Oh shush, Brandon. You're fine. Your grandma's got you." Standing up, Madeline spared on last glance at Juliet before taking off down the hall.

Madeline barely made it around the corner when the door they had been waiting on, opened. A doctor, tall with a five o'clock shadow littering his face, stepped out. "Family of Shawn Spencer?"

Juliet and Gus stood up and took a step toward the doctor. Gus held on tightly to Juliet's hand. Not only to give her comfort, but to receive comfort as well.

The doctor gave them a reassuring smile. "Mr. Spencer is doing quite well. He's still unconscious, but the lack of oxygen hasn't seemed to cause any damage. There was a small laceration on the side of his head that we stitched up. Because he had hit his head, and due to all the recent head trauma, we ran a CT Scan. It came back rather clear, there wasn't anything alarming that came up. So, as of right now we're just waiting for Mr. Spencer to wake up."

Juliet looked at Gus for a moment before turning back to the doctor. "Can we see him?"

Smiling softly, the doctor nodded. "I do ask that you keep your visits limited and that you go in one at a time. Mr. Spencer needs his rest and recuperation."

Both, Juliet and Gus nodded. The doctor waved them forward before turning around. Quickly they followed the doctor through the hospital until he came to stop beside a room. "Mr. Spencer's room." He murmured before walking away.

"You should go in first," Gus whispered.

Juliet shook her head, "No, it's okay. You go first. I need to call Madeline, tell her where we are, and have her pick up the carrier."

Gus nodded before stepping into Shawn's room. He stalked forward, as he stared at his friend. It wasn't the first time Gus had seen Shawn hooked up to machines in the hospital. Not by a long shot, but Gus couldn't help but hope that it would be the last time. Juliet wasn't the only one who couldn't take seeing Shawn like this. So quiet, still, and vulnerable. Not cracking jokes that make absolutely no sense or making obscene movie references.

Walking forward, Gus sat down in one of the chairs that sat beside Shawn's bed. Resting his elbows on the edge of Shawn's bed, Gus lent forward. "Shawn. You have got to stop getting yourself into trouble. It kills us to see you like this. It's painful, and it's breaking Juliet's heart." Sighing, Gus just sat there, staring at Shawn. The gentle rise and fall of his chest. The pallor of his skin was still off, but was much better than when they had first found him. The white gauze that wrapped around the small wound on his head caused his hair to stick up funny. Gus would have to remember that for when Shawn woke up.

* * *

Juliet stood up when Gus approached the door. She gave him a reassuring smile as he popped out of the room.

"He's still unconscious-" Gus paused as he looked around, "Where did Madeline go?"

Juliet shrugged lightly, "I told her she could go in to see Shawn next, but she said that she was tired. She offered to take Brandon for the night so that I could stay here with Shawn."

Gus nodded, "I have to go clear up a few things at work and put in for the next couple of days off. I'll be back soon."

Juliet smirked at him before calling out, "Gus." She waited until he turned around. "Thank you, for being such an amazing friend. I know that you'll always have Shawn's back, but you have been a rock to me for so long now. Thank you for that."

Gus grinned, "You're welcome, Juliet. Just—you never have to thank me for being there. I'll always be there."

Juliet nodded as her eyes filled with tears. Taking a few tentative steps forward, Juliet threw her arms around Gus' neck. "Yeah, but you don't have to be. That's what makes it even better. You chose to stick by our sides. There will never be enough thanks for that."

Gus pulled back slowly and smiled. "I should get going." He mumbled, as he jerked his thumb over his shoulder.

Juliet's arms crossed over her chest as she watched him leave. After a few minutes, she collected herself enough and turned toward the door to Shawn's room. Pushing it open, she stalked forward. No matter how many times she had seen Shawn hooked up to machines and pale as the white sheets covering his body, she would never get used to it.

Settling down in the chair that Gus had only just vacated, she reached forward and grabbed a hold of Shawn's hand. "I love you so much, Shawn. So, you need to wake up and be okay, because I honestly can't handle anymore. I need you to be okay."

"Mmhmm." Shawn moaned out.

Her head lifted as she eyed him. "Come on, baby. Open your eyes."

She watched as he slowly cracked one eyelid open. He slowly craned his head toward her and smiled at her. "Jules." he slurred softly.

"How're you feeling?"

"Head hurts. Throat's sore."

Juliet nodded, she had been expecting that. From what the doctor had told her when they first brought Shawn in that he would be lucky if his vocal chords hadn't been damaged.

"Do you remember anything?"

Shawn slowly tried to lift himself into a sitting position as he thought back. Slowly, things started to float back. His eyes grew wide as he turned his head toward Jules. "I remember."

"So, you remember Marsha Sanders trying to kill you then?"

He grinned brightly, the light burning in his eyes again. "No, Jules. I remember, everything." He breathed out.

Her eyes widened, "You mean...you have your memory back?"

He nodded, "Yeah. Granted, there are some things I would have rather forgotten, but I remember all the good things too. That makes it all okay." He grows silent for a moment, staring at the wall. "How is Michael?"

Juliet's face puckered slightly. She had been avoiding thinking about that. Thinking about how she was going to tell Shawn, and now she had run out of time. Bluntness, it would be best, right? "He—didn't make it."

Shawn's head twisted around, before shaking his head. "No. No, no no! They got out. I watched them get out. Oh God! Lucinda, Julie!"

Juliet stood up, her hands cradled his face softly. "Calm down, Shawn. Lucinda and Julie are fine. Michael got them out and to safety. He went back for you."

Shawn groaned, "Stupid kid." Tears welled in his eyes as he blinked them away. "What happened?"

That question confirmed what Juliet had been afraid to ask. Had he been unconscious before or after Michael had returned? "From what Lucinda told myself and Carlton, Michael felt like he was to blame for the entire thing. That he wouldn't have been able to live with himself if something happened to you. She said that he had returned to the house with the full intention of killing Marsha."

Shawn nodded numbly as he took in the information. "How'd he die?" He asked, his voice monotonic, almost robotic.

Juliet sat back down when she was sure that he wasn't going to freak out again. Crossing her legs, Juliet grabbed his hand in hers, before answering. "He was shot. It was point blank. He was killed instantly."

Shawn's eyes closed as he let a tear slip down his cheek. "He didn't suffer?"

"No." Juliet whispered.

"Julie and Lucinda, they're okay?"

Juliet smiled softly, "They're perfect. Julie asked me when she could come see her hero."

Shawn's head twisted toward Juliet, unshed tears still glistening in his eyes. "She said that?"

Juliet merely stared at Shawn, an almost dumbfounded look on her face. "Of course she did, Shawn. You saved their lives. You could have died."

He nodded his head, "I love you too, by the way."

Juliet lent forward and kissed his lips. "Just—don't ever do that again."

Shawn shrugged, "I'll try." He looked around the room, before raising an eyebrow, "Where is my boy?"

Juliet snuggled her face against Shawn's cheek, "Your mom is keeping him tonight. She figured I wouldn't want to leave your hospital room."

Shawn nodded. He didn't want her to leave either. Just feeling her so close to him was making him feel better. Calming his frayed nerves and hopefully it would keep the nightmares at bay. He knew that they were there, lingering at the fringe of his mind. Slowly, his eyes closed as he drifted off to sleep.


	12. Chapter 12

_**A/N:** _And so it ends. I've said it tons of times before, but I can never thank you all enough for sticking with me through this entire thing! You guys are too awesome for words. This by no means spells the end of me dabbling in the Psych world. I have a one-shot planned, and I plan on starting up my "Your Love Is Like A Song" Song-Fic series. So keep your eyes peeled for that. Also, if any of you guys are Once Upon A Time fans, I have quite a few Once fic's that I've written, if you'd like to check them out in the meantime.

* * *

A screaming cry echoed throughout the house. Shawn groaned as Juliet turned over. Holding out his arm, he shook his head. "I got it." He sighed, as he pulled back his comforter and pulled himself out of bed. "Be back in a flash." He mumbled, as he stumbled forward and pulled the bedroom door open.

He was met with an eager, small yellow lab pacing in front of his legs. "Not now, Pineapple." He said, as he sidestepped the small puppy.

Continuing forward, Shawn walked into the nursery before flipping on the light. "What is wrong with my little princess?" Shawn smiled as he picked up his three month old daughter. As soon as he cradled her small frame in his arms she quieted. "You are so going to be daddy's little girl. Yes, you are."

He still couldn't believe that he was the proud father of two children. Brandon was nearly a year and half and was starting to really take after Shawn. His hair was a golden blonde color with vibrant blue eyes, which was all Juliet, but everything else about Brandon, straight down to his personality, was all Shawn.

Madeline on the other hand, had curly brown hair and hazel eyes, that Shawn continually called her _mood detectors._ He was also certain that Madeline was going to take after Juliet in the personality department, at least he hoped so.

"That's better," Shawn whispered, as Madeline's eyes drifted close as she fell back to sleep. After a few extra minutes, Shawn carefully placed his daughter back into her crib, and covered her back up. He smiled, as he placed his hand against her back. "Daddy loves you, Maddie."

It had been Juliet's idea to name their daughter after his mother, especially after how much help she had been with all of Shawn's various injuries. He sighed happily, before shutting off the light and pulling the door closed behind him.

"Dada!" He heard squawked from the room across the hall.

Running a tired hand across his face, Shawn took a few steps before peeking into the dark room. "Hey, buddy." Shawn said, as he saw his son stand up in his bed.

They had been forced to get Brandon a toddler bed a little earlier than they had anticipated since he hit an early growth spurt and was able to easily climb out of his crib. Shawn and Gus had argued and fought as they put together the railings for the bed to ensure that Brandon didn't fall out of the bed.

"I is a scared." Brandon whimpered, as he rubbed his small fists against his eyes.

Shawn nodded as he walked forward and wrapped his arms around Brandon and hugged him close. "Why are you scared?"

Brandon buried his head into Shawn's shoulder. "Bad man. Bad dream."

Shawn chuckled, talking wasn't Brandon's strong suit, no matter how much him and Juliet worked with him. Though Shawn was certain it was just his son being stubborn. "You had a bad dream? Want to come sleep with me and mommy?" Shawn asked, as Brandon nodded against Shawn's shoulder. "Okay."

Shawn hefted his son into his arms, as he turned around to make his way back into his shared bedroom. Halfway down the hallway, his son's body relaxed as Brandon drifted back off to sleep. Shawn shoved the bedroom door open with his foot as he carried Brandon over the bed and laid his son down.

"I thought we were being strict with him?" Juliet asked sleepily.

"You try saying no to that face, Jules." Shawn whined softly, as he climbed into bed next to his son. Brandon curled up beside Shawn, his head fitting perfectly into the arch of Shawn's arm. Looking over at his wife, who had drifted back to sleep, Shawn smiled. He never knew he could be so happy.

* * *

Juliet roused first in the morning. She stretched for a moment, before moving to pull back the comforter.

"Mama!" Brandon cried from beside her.

In the depths of her murky memory from the night before, Juliet vaguely remembers Shawn bringing Brandon into their room and tucking their son in beside them. For the past few months Brandon had been suffering from relentless night terrors, and his doctor had explained that it was imperative that they didn't continually allow Brandon to sleep in their bed with them. They had been in agreement to stop, but Brandon made it almost impossible with his adorably sad faces and tear and fear filled eyes.

"How's mommy's little man?" Juliet asked her son, before climbing out of bed and holding her arms out to let Brandon crawl into them.

Brandon babbled out some nonsense for a little bit, before Juliet started to laugh at him. "You are definitely you're father's son. So stubborn." She chuckled lightly before sitting him on the living room floor and turning on his favorite cartoon. "Be a good boy for mommy." Juliet said softly, before pressing a chaste kiss to his thick blonde hair.

She stood up and made her way into Madeline's room. Juliet still couldn't believe how good of a baby Maddie was. Her daughter stared up at her, from her position on her back, with her big, round hazel eyes. Madeline rarely cried, however, when she did, only Shawn could calm her down. She was definitely a daddy's girl, where as Brandon was more of a momma's boy. Though, Juliet could tell that it was due in fact that how they were growing up. The first few months of Brandon's life, Shawn had been in a coma. Brandon had only known his mother. While Madeline had both of her parents very present in her life, Shawn was home with her all day long while Juliet worked long shifts at the station.

"How's my beautiful little girl?" Juliet cooed at her daughter, before picking her up.

Madeline gurgled loudly before shoving her fist in her mouth. Juliet shook her head softly, before laying her daughter down on the changing table. She quickly removed Madeline's diaper and replaced it, before changing her out of her sleeper and putting her into a onesie.

"Hey, beautiful." Shawn whispered from the door.

Juliet jumped and gasped, having not realized that her husband was standing at the door. With a hand over her heart as she tried to calm her breathing, Juliet turned toward him. "Are you talking to me or your daughter?"

Shawn smiled, before walking into the room. "Technically? Both of you. You're both my beautiful girls." He whispered huskily, as he pressed a kiss to the side of Juliet's head. Leaning forward, he pressed a kiss to Madeline's forehead. "I'll finish up here, you go make breakfast... unless you want the house to burn down?"

Juliet snickered softly, "No, I don't think I want you to burn down our house. What do you want for breakfast?"

Shawn shrugged, he honestly didn't care. "Whatever you feel like, babe."

Juliet nodded. "I'll surprise you." She said with a wink before scampering off.

Shawn chuckled as he looked down at his daughter. "Please, I'm begging you, take after your mother."

* * *

Juliet knocked heartily on the front door, before shifting Madeline in her arms. A smile graced her lips as Brandon babbled loudly in Shawn's arms, followed by Shawn babbling back. With a shake of her head, Juliet waited until the door was pulled open. Lucinda was standing on the other side, a smile on her lips as her hands lay protectively over her bulging stomach. The thin wedding band and small engagement ring stood out as the sun glistened off of it.

"Shawn, Juliet, we're so glad you could make it. I know that Maddie's been sick lately." Lucinda offered, as she ushered them inside.

"We weren't entirely sure that we'd be able to make it a few days ago, but luckily Maddie's fever broke and she's been feeling better ever since." Juliet said, as she watched Shawn sit Brandon down on his feet. He took off running toward Julie who was sitting on the couch to their left. "Brandon, don't run!" Juliet called, before running a hand over her face.

"You are so lucky that you waited so long in-between children." Shawn muttered, as he watched his son climb up onto the couch next to Julie.

Lucinda chuckled lightly, "Let's go sit down. The party will kick into full swing in a matter of a few minutes. Most of Julie's friends couldn't make it due to the flu. Poor little things."

Juliet and Shawn's faces scrunched up. Both of them had been down with the flu after Brandon had brought it home from daycare, which he only attended twice a week. "Julie's been lucky so far?"

Lucinda nodded, "Fortunately, yes. However, we've been keeping a close eye on her. I've been having a few problems with this pregnancy, and the doctor doesn't want to risk me getting sick. I've already received the flu shot, but he explained that I could still contract it, if I'm overly exposed to it. So, if Julie gets sick, then I will have to stay somewhere else and Carlton will take a few days off to take care of her."

Juliet and Shawn shared a small smile, "Seems like you have it all planned out."

"Juliet." Lassiter called from the doorway. "Shawn." He nodded to a man that he had begrudgingly started to think of as a close friend. Lassiter couldn't deny the fact that Shawn had saved, not only his own life, but his daughter and wife's life more than once. Shawn might be annoyingly immature sometimes, but Lassiter no longer had the ability to deny Shawn's knack at finding the truth and tracking down the bad guys.

Lassiter still didn't quite understand exactly how Shawn's mind worked, and how it led to him jumping to what could be considered absurd conclusions that were almost always right. Juliet had tried to explain to him once how Shawn did it. Chalking it up to the fact that Shawn was hyper-observant and had a photographic memory.

"Lassie!" Shawn cried as he stood up and stalked forward, his arms outstretched toward Lassiter.

"Spencer, I swear to God, if you hug me."

"But, Lassie!" Shawn frowned, "I missed you!" He grinned widely, as he wound his arms around Lassiter's waist. "I'm glad that we're besties now, Lassie. You have no idea!"

Lassiter shoved Shawn off of him, a look of absolute horror on his face. "Stay the hell away from me, Spencer!"

Shawn fought to not chuckle, but he couldn't help it. Some things never change, and Shawn would never want them to. He loved his life, and he never thought it would ever be possible for him to be so happy and content to be stuck in one place for the rest of his life. Shawn had always had that wild streak in him, that urge that made him disappear in the night. Just take off on his bike and see where life took him, but ever since he started Psych and he met Juliet, Shawn couldn't imagine living anywhere else. That wild streak in him slowly started to fizzle out until nothing was left, except for a happy and content man, father, and husband, and Shawn wouldn't have it any other way.


End file.
